What was the significance of the phony war in WW2??

Far from being a quiescent time, the Phoney War (also
known as "The Twilight War" and "Sitzkrieg" (literally, "sitting war")) was a term
coined by American Senator William Borah (1865-1940) and refers specifically to the time
between the Invasion of Poland and the Battle of Britain in the West. However, between
the conquest of Poland and the air war over England, the rest of the world did not
remain idle -- the Soviet Union invaded Finland and conquered the Baltic Republics.  In
the East, China continued its "War of Resistance" against Japan, which had invaded that
country in the mid 1930's. Germany had ramped up war production in the 1930's and was
indeed ready for a big war, namely, the conquest of the Soviet Union. Hitler's reasons
for not prosecuting the war in force against France and England at this time had less to
do with the weather, and more to do with his ultimate concern, the destruction of the
Soviet Union. England, France, and Poland were but minor theatres of
conflict.