UPSC Prelims 2011 IR and Current Affairs questions: topic-wise weightage
UPSC Prelims 2011 asked 5 current affairs questions in GS Paper I, spread over 1 topic. See the current affairs weightage for 2011 below, then attempt each question with the official answer and an explanation.
IR and Current Affairs 2011: questions by topic
Counted from the 5 questions on this page, tagged by topic in the Battle IAS PYQ bank.
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International organisations, groupings and India's relations 5
The “New START” treaty was in the news. What is this treaty ?
Answer (a) & explanation
The answer is (a). New START (New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) was signed in Prague in April 2010 by US President Obama and Russian President Medvedev, and came into force in 2011. It is a bilateral treaty between the USA and Russia that capped each side at 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers, with on-site inspections. Options (b), (c) and (d) describe energy or trade arrangements among other groups, which are unrelated.
Notice its fate: the treaty was extended in 2021 for five years. Russia suspended its participation in 2023. The treaty expired in February 2026 without a replacement, leaving no binding limits on the two largest nuclear arsenals for the first time in decades. Earlier treaties include START I (1991) and the INF Treaty (1987, ended 2019). India is not party to these, and follows no first use.
"Multilateral" in (b), (c) and (d) is the giveaway: START has always been a two-party treaty, first USA–USSR, then USA–Russia.
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Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Southeast Asia has captivated the attention of global community over space and time as a geostrategically significant region. Which among the following is the most convincing explanation for this global perspective ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Option (d) is the most convincing (d). Southeast Asia lies between the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and sea lanes such as the Strait of Malacca, Sunda and Lombok carry a large share of world trade and energy. This lasting maritime character explains its importance 'over space and time'. (a) and (c) are wrong because they describe single periods, the Second World War and the Cold War. (b) is wrong because its position between China and India is only one, narrower angle, not the deepest reason.
Notice the present: the South China Sea disputes, ASEAN centrality and India's Act East and Indo-Pacific policies all flow from this maritime geography. Trap: options tied to one era cannot explain 'over space and time'.
(a) and (c) are true but belong to one period each; the question asks for a reason that holds "over space and time".
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to “Look East Policy” of India, consider the following statements :
- 1. India wants to establish itself as an important regional player in the East Asian affairs.
- 2. India wants to plug the vacuum created by the termination of Cold War.
- 3. India wants to restore the historical and cultural ties with its neighbours in Southeast and East Asia.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Statements 1 and 3 are correct (b). The Look East Policy (1991, under P.V. Narasimha Rao) aimed to make India an important regional player in East and Southeast Asia through trade, investment and ties with ASEAN (1), and to revive old historical and cultural links of Buddhism, trade and Indian kingdoms (3). Statement 2 is wrong: the policy was driven by economic reform and the loss of the Soviet partner, not by a wish to 'fill a Cold War vacuum'. So (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the upgrade: it became the Act East Policy in 2014, adding security, connectivity (Kaladan, India–Myanmar–Thailand highway) and the Indo-Pacific. India became an ASEAN dialogue partner in 1995 and a Comprehensive Strategic Partner in 2022.
Statement 2 sounds right because the policy began in 1991, just as the Cold War ended, but filling a "vacuum" was never its aim.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following :
- 1. Right to education.
- 2. Right to equal access to public service.
- 3. Right to food.
Which of the above is/are Human Right/Human Rights under “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” ?
Answer (d) & explanation
All three are human rights under the UDHR (d). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 1948, lists the right of equal access to public service (Article 21), the right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being, including food (Article 25), and the right to education (Article 26). So options (a), (b) and (c) leave out real rights.
Notice the wider frame: 10 December is Human Rights Day. The UDHR is not a treaty, but its rights were made binding through the two 1966 Covenants (ICCPR and ICESCR). India's own Right to Education (Article 21A, 2002) and the National Food Security Act, 2013 echo these rights.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Recently, the USA decided to support India’s membership in multi-lateral export control regimes called the “Australia Group” and the “Wassenaar Arrangement”. What is the difference between them ?
- 1. The Australia Group is an informal arrangement which aims to allow exporting countries to minimize the risk of assisting chemical and biological weapons proliferation, whereas the Wassenaar Arrangement is a formal group under the OECD holding identical objectives.
- 2. The Australia Group comprises predominantly of Asian, African and North American countries, whereas the member countries of Wassenaar Arrangement are predominantly from the European Union and American continents.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). Statement 1 is wrong: the Australia Group (1985) is indeed an informal group that controls exports useful for chemical and biological weapons, but the Wassenaar Arrangement (1996) is not an OECD body and its aim is different; it controls conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies. Statement 2 is wrong: both groups are dominated by Europe and other Western states, not Asian or African countries. So (a), (b) and (c) fail.
Notice India's progress: it joined the MTCR (2016), Wassenaar (December 2017) and the Australia Group (January 2018), but its bid for the Nuclear Suppliers Group remains blocked, mainly by China. These memberships followed the 2008 India–US civil nuclear deal.
Statement 1 reads well until "a formal group under the OECD": both regimes are informal and stand outside the OECD.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
All years by topic
Every question from 2011 to 2026, grouped by syllabus topic, with year-wise trends.