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FRC 5 - CA Classes For Prelims 2025
IR: section 1: Locations in News
Importance/relevance : PYQ(s) from IR
Q.1) Consider the following pairs: (2024)
Country Reason for being in the news
1. Argentina Worst economic crisis
2. Sudan. War between the country's regular army and paramilitary forces
3. Turkey. Rescinded its membership of NATO
How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
a) Only one pair
b) Only two pairs
c) All three pairs
d) None of the pairs
Q.2) Consider the following statements: (2024)
Statement-I: The Sumed Pipeline is a strategic route for Persian Gulf oil and natural gas shipments
to Europe.
Statement-II: The Sumed Pipeline connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II explains Statement-I
b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement
c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct
Q.3) Consider the following statements regarding the World Toilet Organization: (2024)
1. It is one of the agencies of the United Nations.
2. World Toilet Summit, World Toilet Day, and World Toilet College are initiatives of this
organization to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis.
3. The main focus of its function is to grant funds to least developed and developing countries to
achieve the end of open defecation.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 2 only
b) 3 only
c) 1 and 2
d) 2 and 3
Q.4) Consider the following statements:(2024)
Statement-I: There is instability and worsening security situation in the Sahel region.
Statement-II: There have been military takeovers/coups d'état in several countries of the Sahel
region in the recent past.
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Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II explains Statement-I
b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct.
Q.5) Consider the following statements: (2024)
Statement-I: Recently, Venezuela has achieved a rapid recovery from its economic crisis and
succeeded in preventing its people from fleeing/emigrating to other countries.
Statement-II: Venezuela has the world's largest oil reserves.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II explains Statement-I
b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct.
Q.6) Which one of the following countries has been suffering from decades of civil strife and food
shortages and was recently in the news for a very severe famine? (2023)
a) Angola
b) Costa Rica
c) Ecuador
d) Somalia
Q.7) Consider the following pairs: (2023)
Regions often mentioned in news. Reason for being in news
1. North Kivu and Ituri. War between Armenia and Azerbaijan
2. Nagorno-Karabakh Insurgency in Mozambique
3. Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Dispute between Israel and Lebanon
How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
a) Only one
b) Only two
c) All three
d) None
Q.8) Consider the following pairs: (2023)
Area of conflict mentioned in news Country where it is located
1. Donbas Syria
2. Kachin Ethiopia
3. Tigray North Yemen
How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
a) Only one
b) Only two
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c) All three
d) None
Q.9) In recent years, Chad, Guinea, Mali, and Sudan caught international attention for which one
of the following reasons common to all of them? (2023)
a) Discovery of rich deposits of rare earth elements
b) Establishment of Chinese military bases
c) Southward expansion of the Sahara Desert
d) Successful coups
Q.10) Consider the following statements: (2023)
1. Recently, all the countries of the United Nations adopted the first-ever compact for
international migration, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM).
2. The objectives and commitments stated in the GCM are binding on the UN member countries.
3. The GCM addresses internal migration or internally displaced people in its objectives and
commitments.
How many of the above statements are correct?
a) Only one
b) Only two
c) All three
d) None
Q.11) Consider the following statements: (2023)
Statement-I: Israel has established diplomatic relations with some Arab States.
Statement-II: The Arab Peace Initiative mediated by Saudi Arabia was signed by Israel and the Arab
League.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II is the correct explanation for
Statement-I
b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II is not the correct explanation
for Statement-I
c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct
Q.12) Consider the following statements about G-20:(2023)
1. The G-20 group was originally established as a platform for Finance Ministers and Central Bank
Governors to discuss international economic and financial issues.
2. Digital public infrastructure is one of India's G-20 priorities.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
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Q.13) Which one of the following statements best reflects the issue with the Senkaku Islands,
sometimes mentioned in the news? (2022)
a) They are generally believed to be artificial islands made by a country in the South China Sea.
b) China and Japan engage in maritime disputes over these islands in the East China Sea.
c) A permanent American military base has been set up there to help Taiwan increase its defense
capabilities.
d) Though the International Court of Justice declared them as no man's land, some Southeast Asian
countries claim them.
Q.14) Consider the following pairs: (2022)
Country. Important reason for being in the news recently
1. Chad. Setting up of permanent military base by China
2. Guinea. Suspension of Constitution and Government by military
3. Lebanon. Severe and prolonged economic depression
4. Tunisia. Suspension of Parliament by President
How many pairs given above are correctly matched?
a) Only one pair
b) Only two pairs
c) Only three pairs
d) All four pairs
Q.15) With reference to the New York Declaration on Forests, which of the following statements
are correct? (2021)
1. It was first endorsed at the United Nations Climate Summit in 2014.
2. It endorses a global timeline to end the loss of forests.
3. It is a legally binding international declaration.
4. It is endorsed by governments, big companies, and indigenous communities.
5. India was one of the signatories at its inception.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
a) 1, 2 and 4
b) 1, 3 and 5
c) 3 and 4
d) 2 and 5
Q.16) Consider the following statements: (2021)
1. The Global Ocean Commission grants licences for seabed exploration and mining in
international waters.
2. India has received licences for seabed mineral exploration in international waters.
3. ‘Rare earth minerals ’are present on the seafloor in international waters.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
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c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
Antarctica
1. News → NASA’s Earth Observatory→ Mount Erebus : emitting 80g gold/day.
• Erebus = constant eruption = Strombolian eruptions.
• Mount Erebus + Deception = only two active volcanoes (Antarctica)
• Ross Island + Southernmost
• Process : Gases (Gold) → Crystallization → Dispersal.
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2. News →Thwaites Glacier : Doomsday Glacier 👉 irreversible path to collapse.
• largest in Antarctica + enough ice to raise global sea levels by over 1.2 meters.
• glaciers in West Antarctica : vulnerable to a Marine Ice Cliff Instability.
• Concerns : grounding line recession.
3. News → Department of Posts : second branch of the post office at the Bharati research
station (almost 4 decades)
• First post office in Antarctica at Dakshin Gangotri
• Post office at the Maitri research station :1990.
• Maitri and Bharati are the two active research stations.
• Existence of an Indian post office in Antarctica = strategic purpose.
4. News → 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM)+ 26th Committee on
Environmental Protection (CEP-26).
• reaffirmation : Antarctic Treaty (1959) + Madrid Protocol, 1991
• ATCM = annual meeting of the original 12 parties to the Antarctic Treaty.
• ATCM 46 = Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
• The CEP was established under the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic
Treaty.
• ATCM-46 and CEP-26 : hosted by the Ministry of Earth Sciences through the National Centre
for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa.
• Committee agreed to : protecting the emperor penguin + 17 revised and new management
plans for ASPAs (Antarctic Specially Protected Areas)
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5. Antarctica Governance
• Antarctica Treaty
• Indian Antarctica Act 2022
Asia
Philippines + South China Sea
1. News → Philippines = 75 years = diplomatic ties
2. News → Mount Kanlaon : Philippines = cold lava
• Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park → lahar.
• Rain mixes with volcanic materials like ash, sand, and pebbles, forming a concrete-like
substance.
• Hot vs Cold lava
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3. News → Second Thomas shoal = Philippines denied China’s claim.
4. News → Scarborough Shoal → China marked baselines around Scarborough Shoal.
5. News → Triton Island = military buildup by China.
• Paracel group.
• Equidistant from the coast of Vietnam and China’s Hainan.
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Indonesia
1. News →Indonesia = oldest cave painting = Leang karampuang.
• figurative cave painting
• Dating : uranium series (U-series) analysis of calcite deposits in limestone caves.
• Bhimbetka, Madhya Pradesh are estimated to be around 30,000 years old.
2. News → Mount lewotabi laki laki Volcano erupted : Island of Flores
• part of a twin-volcano system 👉 male and female mountains.
• Eruption has occurred at the male counterpart of the system (Lewotobi Lakilaki) :: female
mountain is known as Lewotobi Perempuan.
• Stratovolcanoes.
• So many Volcanoes → Pacific Ring of Fire (Circum-Pacific Belt) : plates including the Pacific,
Juan de Fuca, Cocos, Indian Australian, Nazca, North American and Philippine Plates.
3. News → Eruption from Mount Merapi in West Sumatra
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4. News → India and Indonesia celebrate 75 years of diplomatic ties
5. News → Sunda trench = Indian ocean tsunami (20 years)
• Earthquake : Sunda Trench 👉 Indo-Australian plate subducts beneath the Burma
microplate (part of the Eurasian plate).
• Tremors : Indonesia, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka,
and Thailand.
Solomon Island
1. News → Solomon Island = world’s largest corals found.
• southeastern tip of the Solomon Islands in an area known as the Three Sisters.
• 40 feet below the surface. Its height (16 feet) indicates an estimated age of over 300 years.
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• It is visible from space.
• Pavona clavus species
Vanuatu
1. News → 7.3 magnitude earthquake
New Caledonia (French)
1. News → New caledonia = emergency
• Bill by French 👉 allows French residents, who have lived for more than 10 years in New
Caledonia, to cast votes in the provincial elections.
Papua New Guinea
1. News → Papua New Guinea = landslide
• More than 2,000 people are estimated to be buried.
• Enga province
• India has provided immediate assistance of USD 1 million to Papua New Guinea.
• Papua New Guinea = partner under the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC)
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Vietnam
1. News → India-Vietnam maritime security dialogue.
2. News → Vietnam = Typhoon Yagi = landslides
• Damage across Southeast Asia : Philippines, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and
particularly Vietnam.
• Category 5 typhoon
• India launched Operation “Sadbhav”
Cambodia
1. News → Cambodia : Techo Funan Canal
• Chinese-backed.
• Mekong River basin to the Cambodian coast
• Phnom Penh with the coastal town of Kep.
• Reduced reliance on Vietnam.
Brunei
1. News → Brunei = Fist bilateral visit by PM
• PM visited the iconic Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque in Bandar Seri Begawan.
• Important partner in India’s ‘Act East ’Policy and Indo-Pacific Vision.
• Third-largest oil producer in Southeast Asia; fourth-largest liquefied natural gas producer
globally.
• Brunei is the only country that is completely located on the island of Borneo.
Gobi Deserts
1. News → China to build world's first molten thorium salt nuclear plant.
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• Asia largest cold desert
• Dinosaur fossils have been found at the red “Flaming Cliffs” of Bayanzag
• Gobi : Gurvansaikhan National Park (Mongolia)
Hormuz
1. News → Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb islands
• Iran summoned China’s ambassador over a joint statement made by China and the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) .
• Iran claims that the islands were historically part of Persian territories.
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Iran
1. News →India and Iran recently signed a 10-year contract to operate the Shahid Beheshti
terminal at the Chabahar Port in Iran.
2. News → US President signed a National Security Presidential Memorandum to start a
“maximum pressure” campaign against Iran which might impact India’s waivers.
3. News → Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi died in a crash
4. News → Israel carried out what it described as “precise and targeted” airstrikes on Iran.
• Important locations : Varzaqan, Giz Galasi Dam, Ilam, Khuzestan, Shahid Beheshti, Bandar Abbas.
This Document is a part of ForumIAS Current Affairs Classes
Forum Learning Centre: Delhi - 2nd Floor, IAPL House, 19 Pusa Road, Karol Bagh, New Delhi - 110005 | Patna - 2nd floor, AG Palace, E Boring Canal
Road, Patna, Bihar 800001 | Hyderabad - 1st & 2nd Floor, SM Plaza, RTC X Rd, Indira Park Road, Jawahar Nagar, Hyderabad, Telangana 500020
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