Learn English – What does “just” mean in this context

phrase-meaningword-meaning

He’s got France and Turkey and maybe a few others, and a statement from about ten other countries wanting some sort of international move—just not necessarily a military strike.

Does "just not necessarily" mean "ten other countries want some sort of international move, but it's not necessarily a military strike, mind you"?

Is this meaning of "just" equivalently expressed by "mind you"?

Best Answer

It seems to be saying that they want to see some action, but that they do not want to see a military strike, as that would be going overboard and doing more harm than good.

I think that saying "but it's not necessarily a military strike, mind you" sort of misses the mark a little bit, and conveys the idea that the operation they have in mind is even more threatening than an ordinary military strike, like a nuclear missile or something.

As a replacement for "just", I think "mind you," and "but" both provide good approximations, but I don't think that "mind you" without a comma is any good, as in @dcaswell's answer

I also do not agree at ALL that the original version sounds awkward, speaking as a native Australian speaker.

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