UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — ASEAN-INDIA MARITIME EXERCISE (AIME-2026) COMMENCES IN SUBIC BAY, PHILIPPINES

Q1. With reference to the navigation regimes under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 (UNCLOS), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Foreign ships enjoy a right of innocent passage through a coastal State's territorial sea, but submarines exercising this right must navigate on the surface and show their flag.
  2. In the contiguous zone, the coastal State exercises the same sovereignty as in its territorial sea, so foreign ships there need its consent to pass.
  3. The freedoms of the high seas are available to land-locked States on the same footing as to coastal States.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q2. The 2016 South China Sea award was delivered by an arbitral tribunal set up under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). With reference to the dispute-settlement machinery of UNCLOS, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Where the parties to a dispute have not accepted the same settlement procedure, the dispute may be submitted only to arbitration under Annex VII, unless they agree otherwise.
  2. If a party disputes whether the court or tribunal has jurisdiction, that question is settled by the court or tribunal itself.
  3. An award is final and binds every State Party to UNCLOS in any later dispute that raises similar issues.
  4. A State may declare that it does not accept compulsory procedures for certain categories of disputes, such as those involving historic titles.
  • A. 2 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q3. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Under UNCLOS, a merchant ship of any State may sail through the exclusive economic zone of another State without seeking that coastal State's permission.
  2. In its exclusive economic zone, a coastal State has sovereign rights over natural resources, not sovereignty over the waters, and all States enjoy freedom of navigation there.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q4. With reference to India's SAGAR and MAHASAGAR maritime frameworks, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Moving from growth 'for All in the Region' to growth 'Across Regions' lets India frame maritime engagement beyond the Indian Ocean, such as with Southeast Asian navies.
  2. MAHASAGAR is confined to maritime security and leaves trade and capacity building to India's separate development-partnership programmes.
  3. The MAHASAGAR doctrine was formally launched at the Indian Navy's first high-level virtual interaction with Indian Ocean Region navies.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q5. With reference to ASEAN centrality and India's engagement with the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. ASEAN centrality bars individual ASEAN members from holding naval exercises with India outside ASEAN-wide frameworks.
  2. ASEAN centrality places ASEAN-led mechanisms, such as the East Asia Summit, at the core of the regional architecture.
  3. The AOIP is ASEAN's own Indo-Pacific framework, and India has sought to align its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN to it.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q6. Consider the following assertion: India's Act East Policy has come to include a defence and security dimension, going beyond the largely economic focus associated with the earlier Look East Policy. Which of the following statements support/supports the above assertion?

  1. AIME-2026, a naval exercise with the maritime forces of ASEAN Member States, is officially described as being conducted in furtherance of the Act East Policy.
  2. At the 22nd ASEAN-India Summit, India proposed a second ASEAN-India Defence Ministers' Meeting alongside a second ASEAN-India maritime exercise.
  3. ASEAN accounts for roughly one-ninth of India's total trade, and the ASEAN-India goods agreement is currently under review.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 only

Q7. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation 2026 is confined to naval and coast-guard security cooperation.
  2. A blue economy approach seeks economic growth, livelihoods and jobs from ocean resources while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q8. With reference to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and the proposed Code of Conduct (COC), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The DOC of 2002 is a commitment among the countries concerned with the South China Sea disputes, and India is not a party to it.
  2. Because the COC is to be adopted on the basis of consensus, any one of the negotiating parties can hold up its conclusion.
  3. ASEAN and India have continued to call for full implementation of the DOC while seeking an early COC, which indicates that the COC had not been concluded when they did so.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 and 2 only