UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Beyond national interest: role of ethics and emotions in world politics
Q1. Which one of the following is regarded as the foundational post-war statement of classical realism, defining the national interest in terms of power and holding that politics is governed by immutable objective laws rooted in human nature?
- A. Kenneth Waltz's Theory of International Politics (1979)
- B. Hans Morgenthau's Politics Among Nations
- C. Alexander Wendt's 'Anarchy Is What States Make of It' (1992)
- D. Stanley Hoffmann's Duties Beyond Borders (1981)
Q2. Consider the following statements regarding the major power-based and norm-based approaches in International Relations theory:
1. Classical realism, as developed by Hans Morgenthau, defines the national interest in terms of power and holds that political action is governed by objective laws.
2. Kenneth Waltz's neorealism locates the causes of war in the anarchic structure of the international system rather than in the power-seeking propensities of political leaders.
3. Because anarchy is a fixed and unalterable feature of the international system, cooperative identities and interests among states are permanently impossible under all circumstances.
4. Constructivism holds that state behaviour is determined exclusively by the material distribution of capabilities, leaving no explanatory role for norms, values or identity.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- Classical realism, as developed by Hans Morgenthau, defines the national interest in terms of power and holds that political action is governed by objective laws.
- Kenneth Waltz's neorealism locates the causes of war in the anarchic structure of the international system rather than in the power-seeking propensities of political leaders.
- Because anarchy is a fixed and unalterable feature of the international system, cooperative identities and interests among states are permanently impossible under all circumstances.
- Constructivism holds that state behaviour is determined exclusively by the material distribution of capabilities, leaving no explanatory role for norms, values or identity.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 3 and 4
- D. 1, 3 and 4
Q3. Stanley Hoffmann's 1977 essay 'An American Social Science: International Relations', the seminal critique of the discipline's Western/US-centric theoretical core, first appeared in which one of the following journals?
- A. Foreign Affairs, published by the Council on Foreign Relations
- B. International Organization, published for the IO Foundation
- C. World Politics, published by the Princeton institute
- D. Daedalus, published by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Q4. With reference to Stanley Hoffmann and his critique of International Relations as a discipline, consider the following:
1. His 1977 essay argued that the discipline's theoretical core emerged from US-specific institutional and political conditions after the Second World War, embedding a particular worldview into supposedly universal theory.
2. His 1981 work Duties Beyond Borders applied ethical and moral-psychology frameworks to international relations.
3. He authored Theory of International Politics (1979), which explained the actions of great powers solely in terms of the anarchical structure of the international system.
4. He authored 'Anarchy Is What States Make of It: The Social Construction of Power Politics' (1992), the founding statement of constructivism in IR.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- His 1977 essay argued that the discipline's theoretical core emerged from US-specific institutional and political conditions after the Second World War, embedding a particular worldview into supposedly universal theory.
- His 1981 work Duties Beyond Borders applied ethical and moral-psychology frameworks to international relations.
- He authored Theory of International Politics (1979), which explained the actions of great powers solely in terms of the anarchical structure of the international system.
- He authored 'Anarchy Is What States Make of It: The Social Construction of Power Politics' (1992), the founding statement of constructivism in IR.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 3 and 4
Q5. Within the United Nations Secretariat, which one of the following bodies is mandated to administer the financial disclosure programme and protection against retaliation, and to foster a culture of integrity, transparency and accountability consistent with the Standards of Conduct for the International Civil Service?
- A. The United Nations Ethics Office of the Secretariat
- B. The Office of Internal Oversight Services of the Secretariat
- C. The Office of the United Nations Ombudsman and Mediation Services
- D. The Joint Inspection Unit of the United Nations system
Q6. The United Nations Ethics Office states that it delivers its mandate through a defined set of strategic functions, which include advice, ethics training and coherence of standards across the UN system. How many such strategic functions are there in all?
- A. Three
- B. Four
- C. Five
- D. Six
Q7. On 12 June 2025 the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional and lasting ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages and the lifting of restrictions on humanitarian aid. How many Member States voted in favour of that resolution?
Q8. Within India's Ministry of External Affairs, which one of the following divisions is the principal recipient of foreign policy inputs from the media and the chief source of dissemination of information on India's foreign policy objectives and measures?
- A. The Policy Planning and Research Division of the Ministry
- B. The Development Partnership Administration of the Ministry
- C. The External Publicity and Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry
- D. The Consular, Passport and Visa Division of the Ministry
Q9. The New York Declaration, endorsed by the UN General Assembly in September 2025 as a roadmap to a two-State solution, was the outcome document of a high-level international conference held at UN Headquarters in July 2025. That conference was organised by which one of the following pairs of States?
- A. Norway and Qatar
- B. France and Saudi Arabia
- C. Egypt and Spain
- D. Ireland and Türkiye
Q10. Consider the following statements about India's officially articulated foreign policy doctrine of strategic autonomy:
1. India simultaneously maintains deeper and more structured partnerships with the United States, Russia, France and Saudi Arabia, reflecting a multi-alignment approach.
2. Strategic autonomy requires India to remain outside all plurilateral and minilateral groupings that involve major powers.
3. India-United States bilateral relations are officially characterised as a 'global strategic partnership' resting on shared democratic values and converging interests.
4. Strategic autonomy, as officially articulated, means that India has permanently discontinued development partnerships, financial aid and capacity building with countries of the Global South.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- India simultaneously maintains deeper and more structured partnerships with the United States, Russia, France and Saudi Arabia, reflecting a multi-alignment approach.
- Strategic autonomy requires India to remain outside all plurilateral and minilateral groupings that involve major powers.
- India-United States bilateral relations are officially characterised as a 'global strategic partnership' resting on shared democratic values and converging interests.
- Strategic autonomy, as officially articulated, means that India has permanently discontinued development partnerships, financial aid and capacity building with countries of the Global South.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 3 only
- D. 2, 3 and 4
Q11. After the June 2025 strikes on the Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan facilities, the official who briefed the Security Council that the attacks had caused 'a sharp degradation in nuclear safety and security' and demanded that inspectors be allowed to account for the 400 kg of uranium enriched to 60 per cent did so as the head of which body?
- A. The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization
- B. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
- C. The International Atomic Energy Agency
- D. The United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs
Q12. Consider the following statements comparing the major theoretical traditions in International Relations:
1. Neorealism, unlike classical realism, explains the behaviour of great powers primarily by the anarchical structure of the international system rather than by the propensity of political leaders to seek power.
2. Constructivism, unlike neorealism, treats anarchy as a social construct whose meaning is shaped by interaction among states, so that self-help is not its only possible outcome.
3. Liberal internationalism, unlike constructivism, denies any role to international institutions and treats the use of force as the ordinary first instrument of statecraft.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Neorealism, unlike classical realism, explains the behaviour of great powers primarily by the anarchical structure of the international system rather than by the propensity of political leaders to seek power.
- Constructivism, unlike neorealism, treats anarchy as a social construct whose meaning is shaped by interaction among states, so that self-help is not its only possible outcome.
- Liberal internationalism, unlike constructivism, denies any role to international institutions and treats the use of force as the ordinary first instrument of statecraft.
- A. 1 only
- B. 1 and 2 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3