A proxy war is a war in which major powers become involved but do not declare war on one another. During the Spanish Civil War, both Germany and the Soviet Union took sides and became actively involved, but they did not formally declare war on one another.
A proxy war is a conflict inflicted by a major power or powers that do not become involved in it directly. Often, proxy wars involve countries fighting their opponents' allies or helping their allies fight their opponents. The number of proxy wars increased gradually since the beginning of the Cold War.
