UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — CONCLUSION OF THE NINTH EDITION OF INDIA-BRAZIL-SOUTH AFRICA MARITIME EXERCISE (IBSAMAR IX 2026)

Q1. With reference to the southern tip of Africa, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Cape of Good Hope is the southernmost point of the African continent.
  2. The conventional boundary between the Indian and Atlantic Oceans runs south from Cape Agulhas along the 20° E meridian.
  3. Off the Cape, the warm current flows in from the Atlantic Ocean while the cold current comes from the Indian Ocean.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 2 only

Q2. If attacks on merchant shipping near the Bab-el-Mandeb strait persist for a prolonged period, which one of the following is the most likely consequence for container shipping between Asia and Europe?

  • A. Ship traffic shifts to the Strait of Hormuz, which offers an alternative entry into the Red Sea
  • B. Ship traffic round the southern tip of Africa rises, lengthening voyages and raising freight rates
  • C. Ship traffic through the Suez Canal rises, as vessels avoid the Gulf of Aden approach entirely
  • D. Ship traffic round the southern tip of Africa rises, shortening voyages and lowering freight rates

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

  1. Disruption of shipping in the Red Sea since late 2023 has increased the strategic importance of the sea route around southern Africa for Asia–Europe trade.
  2. The Bab-el-Mandeb strait links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, so ships avoiding it cannot reach the Suez Canal from the Indian Ocean.
  • 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. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Under UNCLOS, a foreign warship that carries out weapons practice while passing through a coastal State's territorial sea loses the protection of innocent passage.
  2. Under UNCLOS, a coastal State may fix the breadth of its territorial sea at up to 12 nautical miles from the baselines.
  • 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

Q5. With reference to the maritime zones under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. Ships of land-locked States enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea of a coastal State.
  2. In its contiguous zone, a coastal State exercises the same sovereignty that it exercises in its territorial sea.
  3. Within a coastal State's exclusive economic zone, other States may lay submarine cables and pipelines.
  4. A coastal State's sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone extend to producing energy from currents and winds.
  • A. 1, 3 and 4 only
  • B. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • C. 2, 3 and 4 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q6. Consider the following assertion: 'The IBSAMAR exercise extends India's naval cooperation beyond the Indian Ocean Region in a way consistent with India's MAHASAGAR outlook.' Which of the following statements support/supports the above assertion?

  1. MAHASAGAR is framed as a vision of partnership with the Global South as a whole, not just the Indian Ocean littoral.
  2. IBSAMAR brings together the navies of three countries located on three different continents.
  3. IBSAMAR is held every year under an obligation laid down in the Brasilia Declaration of 2003.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only