UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Protest-hit Iran warily watches the U.S. after Washington’s attack in Venezuela

Q1. With reference to the wave of protests that erupted in Iran from late December 2025, which of the following are correctly identified as features of the protest wave?

  1. The protests were triggered by the Iranian rial's collapse to record lows against the U.S. dollar.
  2. They began with a strike by shopkeepers of Tehran's Grand Bazaar before spreading nationwide.
  3. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi ordered talks with representatives of the protesters.
  4. Abdolnasser Hemmati was appointed as the new Governor of the Central Bank of Iran during the unrest.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q2. The U.S. military action of January 3, 2026 that captured the Venezuelan President in Caracas was described by U.S. officials as the largest American military operation in Latin America since which one of the following?

  • A. The 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama (Operation Just Cause)
  • B. The 1983 U.S. invasion of Grenada (Operation Urgent Fury)
  • C. The 1965 U.S. intervention in the Dominican Republic
  • D. The 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba

Q3. The criminal indictment against Nicolás Maduro for running the 'Cartel de los Soles' narco-terrorism network, on the basis of which the January 2026 operation against him was legally justified, was originally framed in March 2020 by which one of the following U.S. agencies?

  • A. U.S. Department of Justice
  • B. U.S. Department of State
  • C. U.S. Department of the Treasury (Office of Foreign Assets Control)
  • D. U.S. Department of Defense

Q4. The 20-year strategic cooperation agreement between Iran and Venezuela, covering refinery overhaul, petrochemicals and defence cooperation — frequently cited as the legal backbone of the present Tehran-Caracas axis — was signed during the visit of which leader, and in which year?

  • A. Nicolás Maduro to Tehran in 2022
  • B. Hugo Chávez to Tehran in 2007
  • C. Nicolás Maduro to Tehran in 2019
  • D. Hugo Chávez to Tehran in 2012