UPSC Mains 2022 GS Paper 4 Q5a: model answer
Russia and Ukraine war has been going on for the last seven months. Different countries have taken independent stands and actions keeping in view their own national interests. We are all aware that war has its own impact on the different aspects of society, including human tragedy. What are those ethical issues that are crucial to be considered while launching the war and its continuation so far? Illustrate with justification the ethical issues involved in the given state of affair.
What the question wants
Identify and justify the key ethical issues in launching and continuing the Russia–Ukraine war.
How to structure it
Jus ad bellum, jus in bello, global effects.
- Launching
- Continuing
- Global ethics
- India's stand
How to think it through
Just war: jus ad bellum (just cause, legitimate authority, right intention, last resort, proportionality, probability of success), jus in bello (distinction, proportionality, necessity), jus post bellum. Issues: sovereignty (UN Charter Art 2(4)), civilian deaths, refugees (~6 million+ abroad), attacks on energy infrastructure, nuclear plant (Zaporizhzhia) risk, food crisis (Black Sea Grain Initiative July 2022–July 2023), sanctions' effect on poor countries. India: dialogue and diplomacy, 'this is not an era of war' (PM to Putin, SCO Samarkand Sept 2022). Keep to 2022 framing but can note.
Model answer
In September 2022, at Samarkand, India's Prime Minister told President Putin that 'today's era is not an era of war'. The line captured the ethical question the war raises.
Ethics of launching the war (jus ad bellum)
- Sovereignty: Article 2(4) of the UN Charter bans force against another state's territorial integrity.
- Last resort: war is just only when diplomacy has truly failed.
- Right intention and proportionality: security concerns, however real, must be weighed against the scale of harm.
Ethics of continuing it (jus in bello)
- Distinction: civilians and civilian infrastructure must not be targeted; strikes on power grids hit millions in winter.
- Proportionality: military gain must justify harm.
- Nuclear safety: fighting around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant risks a disaster beyond borders.
- Human tragedy: millions of refugees, mostly women and children.
Global ethical issues
- Food and energy: blocked grain exports raised prices for poor countries; the Black Sea Grain Initiative (2022) briefly eased this.
- Sanctions also hurt ordinary people in third countries.
India's stand
- Dialogue and diplomacy, humanitarian aid to Ukraine, and concern for the Global South's food and energy security.
Wars are started by a few and paid for by millions; ethics asks who gave the few that right.
Draw: Two columns: 'starting a war' (cause, last resort, proportionality) and 'fighting it' (distinction, proportionality, nuclear safety).
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
Russia–Ukraine war, 'not an era of war' Samarkand Sept 2022, just war theory, jus ad bellum, jus in bello, UN Charter Article 2(4), last resort, distinction, proportionality, Zaporizhzhia, refugees, Black Sea Grain Initiative 2022, sanctions, Global South.
Where most answers lose marks
- Taking sides politically instead of analysing ethical principles.
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Fresh examples from current affairs
Supreme Court: no prior approval under Section 17A needed to probe a bribe demand
In a judgment of 16 October 2026, a Supreme Court Bench of Justices S.V.N. Bhatti and N.V. Anjaria held that investigating a bribe demand by a public servant does not need prior approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Asking for a bribe, the court said, is not part of discharging official duties.
UPSC angle: Prelims: Sections 7, 7A, 17A and 19 of the PC Act. · Mains GS-II/GS-IV: honest officers versus accountability.
19 Oct 2026Learn the concept
Question text as printed in the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) question paper. The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.
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