UPSC Essentials: Daily subject-wise quiz — International Relations (Week 6)

QUESTION 1

With reference to the AUKUS partnership, consider the following statements:

1. It is a partnership between Australia, Kuwait and Singapore to deploy nuclear-powered submarines in the Pacific region.

2. The partnership aims to counter China’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific region.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

QUESTION 2

Which of the following organisation provides financial assistance “Extended Fund Facility”?

(a) International Monetary Organisation

(b) World Bank

(c) ASEAN

(d) BRICS

QUESTION 3

With reference to the Wassenaar Arrangement, which of the following statement(s) is/are correct?

1. The arrangement was formally established in July 1996.

2. It is a voluntary export control regime whose members exchange information on transfers of conventional weapons and dual-use goods and technologies.

3. India has assumed the chairmanship of the Wassenaar agreement for the year 2023.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 2 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

QUESTION 4

Consider the following:

1. Iran

2. Iraq

3. Venezuela

4. Congo

5. Oman

6. USA

Which of the countries given above are part of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)?

(a) 1, 2, 3 and 6 only

(b) 2, 4, 5 and 6 only

(c) 1, 2, 3 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6

QUESTION 5

Uthuru Thila Falhu (UTF) Atoll was recently in the news. It is located in which of the following countries?

(a) Maldives

(b) Fiji

(c) Mauritius

(d) Madagascar

QUESTION 6

Consider the following:

1. Operation Kaveri was launched by India to bring back Indian from the conflict zones in Sudan.

2. Operation Ganga was launched to bring back Indians from Russia.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

QUESTION 7

Consider the following:

1. Lake Huron

2. Lake Superior

3. Lake Michigan

4. Lake Ontario

5. Lake Erie

What is the correct chronological order of these lakes from west to east?

(a) 2 – 1 – 3 – 5 – 4

(b) 3 – 4 – 2 – 1 – 5

(c) 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5

(d) 2 – 3 – 1 – 5 – 4

QUESTION 8

Batken Region was recently in the news due to violent confrontations by local communities. Where it is located?

(a) Tajikistan

(b) Kyrgyzstan

(c) Uzbekistan

(d) Kazakhstan

ANSWERS TO MCQs

1. (b)

FYI:

— AUKUS is a defence deal between Australia, the UK and the US, which was struck to help Australia deploy nuclear-powered submarines in the Pacific region.

— The deal was made to emphasise the countries’ “shared commitment to a free-and-open Indo-Pacific region”. In effect, it seeks to combat China’s ambitions in the region.

— The first major initiative of AUKUS is to deliver a nuclear-powered submarine fleet for Australia. The nuclear-powered submarines will give Australia naval heft in the Pacific, where China has been particularly aggressive.

— The partnership will provide Australia with conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarines in the early 2030s to counter China’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

2. (a)

FYI:

— Sri Lanka qualified for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Fund Facility of $2.9 billion to tide over the worst economic crisis in its history.

— The Extended Fund Facility (EFF) provides financial assistance to countries facing serious medium-term balance of payments problems because of structural weaknesses that require time to address.

— It helps countries to implement medium-term structural reforms, the EFF offers longer program engagement and a longer repayment period.

Purpose

— It provides assistance to countries experiencing serious payment imbalances because of structural impediments or slow growth and an inherently weak balance-of-payments position.

— It supports comprehensive programs focusing on policies needed to correct structural imbalances over an extended period.

Eligibility

— All member countries facing actual or potential external financing needs. Most often used by advanced and emerging market countries, but low-income countries sometimes use the EFF together with the Extended Credit Facility (ECF).

Therefore, option (a)  is the correct answer.

Other Source: (http://www.imf.org)

3. (d)

FYI:

— The Wassenaar Arrangement was formally established in July 1996.

— It is a voluntary export control regime whose 42 members exchange information on transfers of conventional weapons and dual-use goods and technologies.

— Wassenaar aims to promote “greater responsibility” among its members in weapons exports and dual-use goods and prevent “destabilizing accumulations.

— India officially assumed the chairmanship of Wassenaar Arrangement (WA), on January 1, 2023.

— India assuming the Chair of Wassenaar arrangement attests to its commitment and credibility as a country committed to disarmament and prevention of misuse of dual-use products and technologies, a joint International effort to contain any negative fallout.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

4. (c)

FYI:

— The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was founded in Baghdad, Iraq, with the signing of an agreement in September 1960 by five countries namely the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.

— The member countries are Algeria, Angola, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.

— The OPEC Secretariat is located in Vienna which also functions as the Headquarters of the Organization, in accordance with the provisions of the OPEC Statute.

— The OPEC Statute distinguishes between the Founder Members and Full Members. The Statute stipulates that “any country with a substantial net export of crude petroleum, which has fundamentally similar interests to those of Member Countries, may become a Full Member of the Organization, if accepted by a majority of three-fourths of Full Members, including the concurring votes of all Founder Members.”

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Source: (http://www.opec.org)

5. (a)

FYI:

— India and Maldives marked a major step in their growing defence cooperation by launching the construction of a harbour for the Coast Guard of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF).

— The foundation stone for the Coast Guard ‘Ekatha Harbour’ was laid by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Maldivian counterpart, Mariya Didi, at Sifavaru in Uthuru Thila Falhu (UTF) atoll, where India is assisting in the construction of a naval dockyard.

— The project is among the biggest Indian grant-in-aid projects in the Maldives. The project would strengthen Maldivian Coast Guard capability.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

6. (a)

FYI:

— Operation Kaveri was launched by India to rescue its citizens in buses from conflict zones in Khartoum and other troubled areas to Port Sudan from where they are being taken to Jeddah in Indian Air Force’s transport aircraft and Indian Navy’s ships.

— India has set up separate control rooms in Jeddah and Port Sudan and the Indian embassy in Khartoum has been coordinating with them and the MEA’s headquarters in Delhi.

— Operation Ganga is the initiative launched by the government of India to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine. Under this, India has already successfully brought back more than 1,000 of its nationals from the country.

— It has also set up 24×7 control centres to assist in the evacuation of Indians through the border crossing points with Hungary, Poland, Romania and the Slovak Republic.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

7. (d)

FYI:

— Scientists are building a sensor network to detect the trends in the water chemistry of Lake Huron, one of the five Great Lakes of North America.

— It is the first step towards developing a system that would be capable of measuring the carbon dioxide and pH levels of the Great Lakes.

— Acidification of oceans or freshwater bodies takes place when excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere gets rapidly absorbed into them.

— The Great Lakes, five interconnected bodies of water straddling the US-Canada border that drain into the Gulf of St Lawrence in the North Atlantic through the St Lawrence River, are the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world.

— The Great Lakes are, from west to east:  Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. They are a dominant part of the physical and cultural heritage of North America.

— Lake Huron is the world’s third-largest freshwater lake, after Lake Superior and Lake Victoria.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

Other Source: (www.epa.gov)

8. (b)

FYI:

— Kyrgyzstan reported 18 wounded overnight in its southern Batken province which borders Tajikistan’s northern Sughd region and features a Tajik exclave, Vorukh, a key hotspot in recent conflicts.

— The Batken region is located in Kyrgyzstan. There has been constant shelling and violent confrontations by local communities on either side.

— The clashes over the poorly demarcated border between the two former Soviet republics are frequent, but they usually de-escalate quickly, although they almost led to an all-out war last year. Both host Russian military bases and have close ties with Moscow, which urged a cessation of hostilities.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Previous Quizzes:

Polity and Governance (Week 3)

Polity and Governance (Week 4)

Polity and Governance (Week 5)

History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 3)

History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 4)

History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 5)

UPSC Weekly Quiz (Current Affairs)

UPSC Essentials: Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 3)

UPSC Essentials: Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 4)

UPSC Essentials: Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 5)

UPSC Essentials: Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 5)

Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 3)

Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 4)

Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 5)

International Relations (Week 3)

International Relations (Week 4)

International Relations (Week 5)

Tomorrow’s Quiz: Polity and Governance

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