India-China Relations & LAC — Set 14
International Relations · भारत-चीन संबंध और LAC · Questions 131–140 of 160
India's 'strategic autonomy' in foreign policy means:
Correct Answer: B. India makes independent decisions without being bound to any bloc, while building relationships across blocs
India's strategic autonomy means making independent foreign policy decisions without being permanently bound to any single power or bloc. This allows India to buy Russian weapons while cooperating with the USA through Quad and iCET, participate in Chinese-led BRICS and SCO while opposing BRI. Strategic autonomy is India's core foreign policy principle evolved from non-alignment.
The Agni-V's classification as an ICBM (range 5,000+ km) makes India part of a select group of nations with ICBMs including:
Correct Answer: B. USA, Russia, China, France, UK (P5) and now India
With Agni-V (range 5,000+ km), India joins the exclusive club of nations with ICBM capability alongside the P5 (USA, Russia, China, France, UK) and to some extent North Korea. Most importantly, Agni-V gives India full deterrence against China, covering all Chinese cities including Beijing and Shanghai, fundamentally altering the India-China nuclear balance.
China's Kyaukpyu port in Myanmar is strategically important because it:
Correct Answer: B. Gives China access to Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean, near India's Andaman Islands
Kyaukpyu deep-sea port in Myanmar, developed with Chinese investment as part of CMEC (China-Myanmar Economic Corridor), gives China access to the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean. It is near India's strategically important Andaman and Nicobar Islands. India views Kyaukpyu as part of China's 'String of Pearls' encirclement strategy.
India's defence exports have grown significantly post-2020 including sale of BrahMos to Philippines in:
Correct Answer: B. 2022
India sold BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines in January 2022, marking BrahMos' first export. The Philippines acquired BrahMos for coastal defence against potential Chinese aggression in the South China Sea. This sale demonstrated India's growing defence export capability and the strategic relevance of BrahMos in countering China regionally.
India's ONGC Videsh has oil exploration rights in Vietnam's EEZ, which China claims under the:
Correct Answer: B. Nine-Dash Line
India's ONGC Videsh has oil exploration rights in blocks 127 and 128 in Vietnam's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea. China claims these areas under its Nine-Dash Line and has pressured India to abandon these rights. India has refused to yield, viewing its presence in Vietnam's EEZ as both a commercial interest and a strategic pushback against Chinese maritime claims.
The Line of Actual Control's total length of approximately 3,488 km spans which three major sectors?
Correct Answer: B. Western (Ladakh), Middle (HP/UK), Eastern (Sikkim/AP)
The approximately 3,488 km LAC spans three sectors: Western sector in Ladakh (most disputed, ~1,597 km), Middle sector in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand (least disputed, ~545 km), and Eastern sector in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh (~1,346 km). Understanding these sectors is fundamental to understanding India-China border management.
India's response to China's blocking of Masood Azhar's designation as global terrorist in UNSC included:
Correct Answer: B. India built international coalition pressure until China finally agreed in 2019 after four vetoes
China blocked the UN Security Council designation of JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist four times (2009, 2016, 2017, 2019) before finally withdrawing its veto in May 2019. India built sustained international pressure through bilateral diplomacy, US support, and public campaigns. Azhar's designation came just before India's Balakot strikes.
India's 'neighbourhood first policy' prioritizes which group of countries?
Correct Answer: B. SAARC members (Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives, Afghanistan)
India's 'Neighbourhood First Policy' prioritizes SAARC members — Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives, and Afghanistan. PM Modi demonstrated this at his 2014 inauguration by inviting all SAARC leaders. The policy is partly a counter to China's growing influence in South Asia through BRI investments in these countries.
The concept of India-China 'competitive cooperation' means:
Correct Answer: B. They compete on security and geopolitics but cooperate in multilateral forums like BRICS, G20, climate
India-China 'competitive cooperation' means the relationship has both competitive (border, geopolitics, regional influence) and cooperative (BRICS, G20, climate change, WTO reform) dimensions simultaneously. Neither pure rivalry nor alliance, this dynamic is characteristic of major power relationships in the multipolar world. India's policy seeks to engage China across all dimensions rather than purely confronting or appeasing.
PM Modi met President Xi for the first time at the informal Wuhan summit in 2018. The second informal summit was at:
Correct Answer: B. Mahabalipuram (Chennai), 2019
The second Modi-Xi informal summit was held at Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram) near Chennai in October 2019, creating the 'Chennai Connect.' This summit focused on trade and economic cooperation. Just months later, COVID-19 originated in Wuhan and relations deteriorated sharply following the 2020 Ladakh standoff, making this the last bilateral summit before the crisis.