UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Wars, global crises may top agenda of BRICS summit

Q1. With reference to the enlargement of the BRICS grouping, consider the following: 1. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates acquired full membership with effect from 1 January 2024. 2. Indonesia acquired full membership of the grouping in January 2025. 3. Belarus, Bolivia and Kazakhstan acquired full membership in the same round in which Indonesia was admitted. 4. South Africa's accession in 2010 converted the grouping from BRIC into BRICS. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates acquired full membership with effect from 1 January 2024.
  2. Indonesia acquired full membership of the grouping in January 2025.
  3. Belarus, Bolivia and Kazakhstan acquired full membership in the same round in which Indonesia was admitted.
  4. South Africa's accession in 2010 converted the grouping from BRIC into BRICS.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 1 and 4 only

Q2. Consider the following statements comparing the original and the enlarged BRICS grouping: 1. The acronym 'BRIC' was coined by an economist in 2001, whereas the grouping's first formal leaders' summit was convened only in 2009, at Yekaterinburg in Russia. 2. Unlike the enlargement round effective from January 2024, which conferred full membership, the January 2025 round additionally created a separate category of partner countries that includes Malaysia, Nigeria and Vietnam. 3. Saudi Arabia, invited in the same round as Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE, took up full membership with effect from 1 January 2024. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The acronym 'BRIC' was coined by an economist in 2001, whereas the grouping's first formal leaders' summit was convened only in 2009, at Yekaterinburg in Russia.
  2. Unlike the enlargement round effective from January 2024, which conferred full membership, the January 2025 round additionally created a separate category of partner countries that includes Malaysia, Nigeria and Vietnam.
  3. Saudi Arabia, invited in the same round as Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE, took up full membership with effect from 1 January 2024.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q3. Consider the following statements comparing the 18th BRICS Summit with its immediate predecessor: 1. The 18th Summit is being held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, whereas the preceding Summit was hosted at Rio de Janeiro in July 2025. 2. The declaration adopted at the preceding Summit was the first leaders' declaration in the grouping's history to be adopted by consensus, every earlier summit having concluded without any joint document. 3. The chairship theme under which the 18th Summit is being convened recasts the acronym as 'Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability', a formulation announced by the Indian Prime Minister at the preceding Summit. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The 18th Summit is being held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, whereas the preceding Summit was hosted at Rio de Janeiro in July 2025.
  2. The declaration adopted at the preceding Summit was the first leaders' declaration in the grouping's history to be adopted by consensus, every earlier summit having concluded without any joint document.
  3. The chairship theme under which the 18th Summit is being convened recasts the acronym as 'Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability', a formulation announced by the Indian Prime Minister at the preceding Summit.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q4. With reference to the 18th BRICS Summit, consider the following: 1. It is scheduled at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, on 12-13 September 2026. 2. It is the eighteenth edition of the grouping's leaders' summit. 3. The Secretary-General of the United Nations is expected to take part although he heads no member state of the grouping. 4. It is the first leaders' summit of the grouping to be hosted in India, no earlier edition having been held in the country. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It is scheduled at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, on 12-13 September 2026.
  2. It is the eighteenth edition of the grouping's leaders' summit.
  3. The Secretary-General of the United Nations is expected to take part although he heads no member state of the grouping.
  4. It is the first leaders' summit of the grouping to be hosted in India, no earlier edition having been held in the country.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 4 only
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 3 and 4 only

Q5. With reference to events held in India under its 2026 BRICS Chairship, consider the following: 1. The first meeting of the BRICS Sherpas under India's Chairship was convened at New Delhi in February 2026. 2. The 16th BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting was hosted at New Delhi in July 2026. 3. The 10th BRICS Industry Ministers' Meeting and the 16th BRICS Trade Ministers' Meeting were both concluded at Jaipur. 4. The 3rd BRICS Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction was hosted at New Delhi by the National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The first meeting of the BRICS Sherpas under India's Chairship was convened at New Delhi in February 2026.
  2. The 16th BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting was hosted at New Delhi in July 2026.
  3. The 10th BRICS Industry Ministers' Meeting and the 16th BRICS Trade Ministers' Meeting were both concluded at Jaipur.
  4. The 3rd BRICS Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction was hosted at New Delhi by the National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 3 and 4
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 3 and 4 only

Q6. Which one of the following correctly states the chairships of the grouping in the two years immediately preceding India's assumption of the BRICS chair on 1 January 2026?

  • A. Russia in 2024, followed by Brazil in 2025
  • B. Brazil in 2024, followed by Russia in 2025
  • C. South Africa in 2024, followed by Russia in 2025
  • D. Russia in 2024, followed by South Africa in 2025

Q7. Of the five countries Belarus, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, whose leaders are expected at the New Delhi summit, how many are associated with the grouping as partner countries rather than as full members?

  • A. Only two of them
  • B. Only four of them
  • C. All five of them
  • D. Only three of them

Q8. Which one of the following pairs correctly identifies, respectively, the Indian body that coordinates the country's BRICS chairship and leaders' summit, and the body that hosted the 3rd BRICS Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction in 2026?

  • A. Ministry of External Affairs; National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. Ministry of External Affairs; National Institute of Disaster Management under the Ministry of Earth Sciences
  • C. NITI Aayog; National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • D. Ministry of Commerce and Industry; National Remote Sensing Centre under the Department of Space

Q9. With reference to the state of India-China relations around the 18th BRICS Summit, consider the following: 1. The Chinese President's participation in the Summit is his first visit to India since 2019. 2. Beijing officially announced the visit, describing it as his first to India in seven years. 3. The meeting of the two leaders that began the recent improvement in ties took place at Kazan in 2024, on the margins of the 16th BRICS Summit. 4. The border stand-off that began with the Galwan Valley clash of 2020 was formally wound down by a disengagement understanding announced in October 2022. Which of the above is/are NOT correct?

  1. The Chinese President's participation in the Summit is his first visit to India since 2019.
  2. Beijing officially announced the visit, describing it as his first to India in seven years.
  3. The meeting of the two leaders that began the recent improvement in ties took place at Kazan in 2024, on the margins of the 16th BRICS Summit.
  4. The border stand-off that began with the Galwan Valley clash of 2020 was formally wound down by a disengagement understanding announced in October 2022.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 4 only
  • D. 2 and 4 only

Q10. With reference to the India-China engagement surrounding the New Delhi summit, consider the following: 1. The Chinese President is expected to hold bilateral talks with the Indian Prime Minister on the margins of the Summit. 2. China's liberalisation of tourist visas for Indian nationals is cited among the markers of the ongoing normalisation. 3. The 2019 engagement that brought the Chinese President to India was the informal summit held at Wuhan. 4. The 16th BRICS Summit, on whose margins the two leaders met in 2024, was held at Kazan in Russia. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The Chinese President is expected to hold bilateral talks with the Indian Prime Minister on the margins of the Summit.
  2. China's liberalisation of tourist visas for Indian nationals is cited among the markers of the ongoing normalisation.
  3. The 2019 engagement that brought the Chinese President to India was the informal summit held at Wuhan.
  4. The 16th BRICS Summit, on whose margins the two leaders met in 2024, was held at Kazan in Russia.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 4
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q11. With reference to the documented effects of the West Asian conflict that broke out in late February 2026, consider the following: 1. The World Bank's Commodity Markets Outlook of April 2026 projects energy prices to rise about 24 per cent in 2026, to their highest level since 2022. 2. Fertilizer prices are projected to rise about 31 per cent in 2026, driven by a jump of roughly 60 per cent in urea prices. 3. Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell by more than 90 per cent in early March 2026, with Gulf oil production curtailed by about 10 million barrels per day by 10 March. 4. The World Food Programme estimates that a prolonged conflict could push up to 4.5 million more people into acute food insecurity within the year. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The World Bank's Commodity Markets Outlook of April 2026 projects energy prices to rise about 24 per cent in 2026, to their highest level since 2022.
  2. Fertilizer prices are projected to rise about 31 per cent in 2026, driven by a jump of roughly 60 per cent in urea prices.
  3. Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell by more than 90 per cent in early March 2026, with Gulf oil production curtailed by about 10 million barrels per day by 10 March.
  4. The World Food Programme estimates that a prolonged conflict could push up to 4.5 million more people into acute food insecurity within the year.
  • A. 1 and 4 only
  • B. 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4

Q12. Under the agreement establishing the New Development Bank, the Bank's first President was to be nominated by which member, and its headquarters located in which city?

  • A. Brazil; Shanghai
  • B. India; Shanghai
  • C. China; Shanghai
  • D. Russia; Johannesburg