UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Inter-Ministerial Briefing on Recent Developments in West Asia

Q1. With reference to the 'Inter-Ministerial Briefings' convened in connection with the 2025-26 West Asia situation, which one of the following is the nodal coordinator that hosts these briefings at the National Media Centre, New Delhi?

  • A. Press Information Bureau under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
  • B. External Publicity & Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs
  • C. Cabinet Secretariat's National Crisis Management Committee
  • D. National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs

Q2. With reference to the Inter-Ministerial Briefing on Recent Developments in West Asia held at the National Media Centre, consider the following Union Ministries: 1. Ministry of External Affairs 2. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas 3. Ministry of Home Affairs 4. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Which of the above were officially listed as participating ministries in the briefing?

  1. Ministry of External Affairs
  2. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas
  3. Ministry of Home Affairs
  4. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
  • A. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • C. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q3. Which one of the following is the sole nodal entity that provides credit guarantee coverage to Member Lending Institutions under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0?

  • A. Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE)
  • B. National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC)
  • C. Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC)
  • D. Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI)

Q4. India's Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) programme — including the underground rock-cavern facilities at Vishakhapatnam, Mangaluru and Padur — is exclusively implemented by which one of the following entities under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas?

  • A. Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Oil Industry Development Board
  • B. Engineers India Limited (EIL), a public-sector consultancy under MoPNG
  • C. Petronet LNG Limited, a joint-venture promoted by GAIL, ONGC, IOCL and BPCL
  • D. Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), the upstream regulator under MoPNG

Q5. With reference to the I2U2 grouping and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), consider the following statements:

  1. The I2U2 grouping held its first leaders' summit in July 2022, whereas the IMEC Memorandum of Understanding was announced on the sidelines of the G20 New Delhi Summit in September 2023.
  2. Both I2U2 and IMEC include India, the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia as founding members.
  3. The IMEC MoU was signed by India, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q6. Which of the following countries are NOT signatories to the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) Memorandum of Understanding announced at the G20 New Delhi Summit, 2023?

  1. France
  2. Israel
  3. Jordan
  4. Italy
  • A. 1 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 3 only

Q7. With reference to the Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool (BMIP) launched in the context of the West Asia crisis, which of the following statements is/are correct?

  1. The Pool has a total capacity of USD 1.5 billion and is backed by a sovereign guarantee of approximately Rs 12,980 crore.
  2. General Insurance Corporation of India Re (GIC Re) acts as the administrator of the Pool.
  3. The Pool extends cover only to hull and machinery risks and explicitly excludes war-risk cover for vessels transiting high-risk zones.
  4. Insurance cover under the Pool is available for Indian-flagged or Indian-controlled vessels, as well as vessels destined to or starting from India.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q8. The Long-Term Agreements signed in July 2025 between Saudi Arabia's Ma'aden and the Indian companies IPL, KRIBHCO and CIL for the supply of 3.1 million tonnes per annum of Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) for five years were concluded during the official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia of which one of the following Union Ministers?

  • A. Shri J.P. Nadda, Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers
  • B. Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry
  • C. Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Labour and Employment
  • D. Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas
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