Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC)
Competitive Examination for Recruitment to BPS-17 Posts under the Federal Government
Paper: International Relations
Time Allowed: 3 Hours
PAPER-I (Objective) 20 Marks
PART-I
Multiple choice Questions. (20)
1. _________________ marked the turning point of the Second World War in the European theatre.
(A) Operation Barbarossa (B) Battle of Britain (C) Battle of Stalingrad (D) None of these
2. _________________ argued that globalization leads to a “borderless world” characterized by increased interdependence among states?
(A) Adam Smith (B) Thomas Friedman (C) Francis Fukuyama (D) None of these
3. Which of the following statements reflects the difference between regionalism and regionalization?
(A) Regionalism involves formal institutional arrangements; regionalization refers to the process of increasing regional interconnections
(B) Regionalism refers to informal trade patterns, while regionalization refers to formal alliances
(C) Regionalism is primarily cultural, while regionalization is political (D) None of these
4. The four-point formula on Kashmir, often attributed to Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf, did not include which of the following elements?
(A) Self-governance (B) Demilitarisation (C) Joint supervision mechanism (D) None of these
5. The Siachen conflict originates mainly because India and Pakistan interpret _____________ boundary point differently.
(A) NJ 9842 (B) Point 5353 (C) K2 Meridian (D) None of these
6. _____________________ events tested NATO’s collective defense principle for the first time?
(A) The Cuban Missile Crises (B) The 9/11 terrorist attacks (C) The Korean War (D) None of these
7. ________________ played a decisive role in ending the Suez Canal Crisis through diplomatic intervention?
(A) International Court of Justice (B) NATO (C) OIC (D) None of these
8. Article ___________ of the UN Charter grants the Security Council primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.
(A) 51 (B) 26 (C) 33 (D) None of these
9. What is the main difference between UNGA resolutions and UNSC resolutions under Chapter VII?
(A) UNGA – legally binding; UNSC – non-binding (B) UNGA – non-binding; UNSC – legally binding
(C) Both are non-binding (D) None of these
10. __________________ is the primary instrument through which the IMF provides short- to medium- term balance-of-payments assistance to member states.
(A) Poverty Reduction Growth Trust (PRGT) (B) Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) (C) Structural Adjustment Facility (SAF) (D) None of these
11. ________________ summit of the SCO led to the inclusion of India and Pakistan as full members.
(A) 2001 Moscow (B) 2005 Astana (C) 2017 Astana (D) None of these
12. ________________ region’s overland connectivity is most central to China’s effort to bypass the Malacca Strait under the Silk Road Economic Belt.
(A) Central Asia (B) Middle East (C) Africa (D) None of these
13. During ___________________ summit did Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) formally announce the creation of its own development bank.
(A) 2012 Bishkek (B) 2017 Astana (C) 2025 Tianjin (D) None of these
14. The core legal basis of the India–Pakistan dispute over Sir Creek relates to differing interpretations of which colonial document?
(A) Durand Line Agreement (1893) (B) Karachi Agreement (1949) (C) Bombay Resolution of 1914 (D) None of these
15. _______________________ is not a key pillar of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
(A) Non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (B) Disarmament obligations for nuclear-weapon states (C) Promotion of peaceful nuclear energy (D) None of these
16. ____________ Canal saves ships 8000 miles journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
(A) Corinth (B) Suez (C) Kiel (D) None of these
17. Putin annexed Crimea to secure port of _________ Russia’s only true major warm water port.
(A) Rijeka (B) Kronshtadt (C) Odessa (D) None of these
18. Which of the following countries is not a member of Arctic Council?
(A) Iceland (B) Russia (C) USA (D) None of these
19. Who said this: “Offshore fields, especially in the Arctic, are without any exaggeration our strategic reserve for the twenty-first century”.
(A) President Trump (B) President Nicolas Maduro (C) President Putin (D) None of these
20. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) affirms that a signatory to the convention has exclusive economic rights from its Shore to a limit of _________ hundred miles.
(A) Two (B) Five (C) Three (D) None of these
PAPER-I (Subjective) 80 Marks
PART-II
Attempt ONLY FOUR Questions from PART-II. (20×4)
Q. No. 2. Assess the implications of the revival of multipolarity for medium and small powers. How have states such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Pakistan leveraged the shifting structure of global power to pursue strategic autonomy or hedging strategies? (20)
Q. No. 3. How did Operation Bunyan-ul-Marsoos illustrate shifts in conventional military posture and nuclear deterrence dynamics between India and Pakistan? Critically evaluate the strategic, operational, and diplomatic success of Pakistan during the May 2025 Four-Day War with reference to escalation control, signaling, and crisis-stability mechanisms. (20)
Q. No. 4. China currently controls the overwhelming majority of global rare earth mining and processing capacity. Analyze how this near-monopoly shapes the strategic, technological, and defense vulnerabilities of the United States and Europe. Support your discussion with relevant examples of rare earth elements and their critical applications. (20)
Q. No. 5. Critically evaluate the effectiveness of international counter-terrorism frameworks, focusing on UN Security Council resolutions and FATF measures. Assess their impact in disrupting terrorist networks, citing specific examples of successes and challenges. (20)
Q. No. 6. Critically analyze the United Nations reform proposals put forward by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, specifically focusing on Model A and Model B for Security Council restructuring. Discuss the key features, differences, and potential implications of each model for the effectiveness, legitimacy, and representativeness of the UN Security Council. In your answer, consider both the challenges and opportunities these reforms might present for global governance. (20)
Q. No. 7. Provide the key provisions of the 2020 Doha Agreement and critically analyze the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Evaluate whether the Doha framework functioned as a peace settlement, an exit strategy, or a negotiated surrender. Support your discussion with reference to power asymmetries, Afghan state capacity, and regional geopolitical calculations. (20)
Q. No. 8. How is a trade war defined in contemporary international relations? Assess the economic and strategic consequences of the US-China trade war. Analyze how it has affected global trade flows, investment patterns, and technology transfer. Support your answer with relevant examples and evidence. (20)
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