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Mock tests follow the exact UPSC Prelims format: 100 questions for GS Paper I with 2-hour timer, +2 marks for correct answers, and -0.67 for wrong answers. Each question has a detailed explanation.

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Concept Notes

Analytical notes built around one principle — if it won't help you eliminate a wrong option or write a better answer, it doesn't belong here.

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Showing 6 notes in International Relations Clear filter

International Relations✓ Free

India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEEC): Geopolitics of a New Trade Route

Announced at the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit — the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) connects India to Europe via UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, and Greece. It is the most ambitious counter to China's Belt and Road Initiative. 4,800 km of rail and maritime links.

Jun 1, 20267 min read

International Relations✓ Free

India and the WTO: Public Stockholding, E-Commerce, and the Trade Agenda

India's WTO engagement is defined by three battles: protecting food subsidies (public stockholding — the Peace Clause), resisting e-commerce rules (moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions), and agricultural market access. The 13th WTO Ministerial (MC13, 2024) was inconclusive. MC14 (2027) will be critical for India's trade policy.

Jun 1, 20267 min read

International Relations✓ Free now

Non-Alignment Movement: Origins, Relevance, and India's Strategic Autonomy Today

NAM was India's answer to the Cold War's binary of US vs USSR. Nehru, Nasser, and Tito founded it in 1961. Today NAM has 120 members but its original meaning has dissolved. UPSC tests NAM's history, the Panchsheel principles, India's current policy of 'strategic autonomy' and 'multi-alignment', and whether NAM is still relevant.

May 29, 20267 min read

International Relations✓ Free

G20 2023 New Delhi Declaration: Africa in the Room, Ukraine off the Table

G20 2023 under India's presidency: African Union admitted as permanent member, Ukraine language diluted, Green Development Pact signed. UPSC's go-to IR current affairs question for the next three years.

May 14, 20268 min read

International Relations✓ Free

India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEEC): The New Trade Route Reshaping Global Commerce

Announced at the 2023 G20 New Delhi Summit, the IMEEC represents India's most ambitious infrastructure diplomacy play, directly countering China's Belt and Road Initiative across the Indo-Mediterranean arc. Comprising an East Corridor (India to Gulf) and a Northern Corridor (Gulf to Europe), this multimodal transport network integrates shipping, rail, and undersea data-energy cables.

May 14, 20268 min read

International Relations✓ Free now

India's Foreign Policy: Strategic Autonomy vs. Non-Alignment 2.0

India no longer calls itself non-aligned, but it still refuses binding alliances. Understanding why — and how this plays out with the US, Russia, and China — is the core of GS2 IR.

Apr 12, 20268 min read