skirmish

Second, airstrikes or even conventional cruise missile strikes, like in 2019, are also on the table - each carrying the risk of a retaliatory spiral, as seen in the air skirmishes that followed then.

But the writers are correct to skip past skirmishes that don’t mean much to grant a close-up to the small moments that do.

But the latest skirmish between Trump and China has painted a target on this nation’s most important manufacturing exporter: Boeing Co.

Already-existing tensions increased and spurred a steady stream of brutal skirmishes involving cattle raids, home invasions, attacks, and killings between the two groups.

But his team halted its plan to double US tariffs on imports of Canadian steel and aluminium to 50%, only hours after threatening America's northern neighbour in another skirmish in their trade war.