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FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR
RECRUITMENT TO POSTS IN BPS-17 UNDER
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, 2026

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

PART-I (MCQs)(COMPULSORY)

1. According to the Balance of Power theory, peace is maintained when:
(A) Global institutions govern all disputes (B) No single state becomes overwhelmingly powerful
(C) Economic inequality is minimized (D) Single state govern all disputes

2. A key criticism of Realism is that it:
(A) Focuses excessively on international law (B) Assumes all states are cooperative
(C) Overlooks the role of ideas, norms, and domestic politics in shaping state behavior (D) None of these

3. The balance of Power concept suggests:
(A) States form alliances to prevent any one state from dominating
(B) All states should disarm to achieve peace (C) International organizations cause stability (D) None of these

4. Which of the following is a key determinant of foreign policy?
(A) Domestic political structures (B) Economic and military capabilities
(C) Both (A) & (B) (D) Geographical location

5. Total War differs from Limited War in that:
(A) Limited war involves total mobilization of society (B) Total war mobilizes all societal resources for conflict
(C) Total war is always defensive (D) None of these

6. Deterrence Theory is based on the idea that:
(A) Threat of retaliation prevents aggression (B) International law guarantees compliance
(C) Both (A) & (B) (D) None of these

7. International law primarily serves to:
(A) Provide legally binding rules governing relations among states
(B) Ensure states always have the same interests (C) Both (A) & (B) (D) None of these

8. Which of the following is a primary function of the IMF?
(A) Lending to countries facing balance-of-payments crises (B) Building infrastructure in developing countries
(C) Ensuring that recipient countries undertake reforms (D) Both (A) & (C)

9. Treaty of Friendship between Pakistan and China was signed in:
(A) 1959 (B) 1971 (C) 1992 (D) None of these

10. Which international tribunal has the right to prosecute individuals for war crimes and crimes against humanity?
(A) United Nations Prosecution Council (B) International Court of Justice
(C) International Criminal Court (D) Both (A) & (C)

11. Causes of war often include:
(A) Competition over resources (B) Nationalism and ideological differences
(C) Both (A) & (B) (D) None of these

12. The World Bank differs from the IMF because it primarily:
(A) Handles balance-of-payments crises (B) Manages global monetary policy
(C) Focuses on long-term development and poverty reduction (D) Both (A) & (C)

13. According to _____________ ‘war is an extension of politics by other means’.
(A) Hans Morgenthau (B) Sun Tzu (C) Thomas Hobbes (D) None of these

14. What is regionalism?
(A) Creation of a new regional polity bringing together a number of different constituent parts
(B) Regular and sustained interaction between states on policy issues
(C) Development of institutionalized cooperation among states and other actors on the basis of regional contiguity as a
feature of global politics (D) None of these

15. The last SAARC Summit was held in __________ in Nepal.
(A) 2022 (B) 2019 (C) 2016 (D) None of these

16. Which scenario best demonstrates the use of deterrence in international relations?
(A) A country mobilizes all its resources to prevent attack (B) A country relies on international courts for security
(C) A country signs international security regimes (D) None of these

17. National interest is influenced by:
(A) Political, Military & economic capability (B) Geography, resources, historical experiences, and domestic politics
(C) Cultural similarities with other states only (D) None of these

18. Which statement best reflects feminist IR theory?
(A) Gendered assumptions shape security policies and international priorities
(B) Gender role in International law ensures equality automatically
(C) Gender sensitive economic growth determines all foreign policy (D) None of these

19. Woodrow Wilson was proponent of:
(A) Realism (B) Idealism (C) Constructivism (D) Fascism

20. Pakistan shares land and/or maritime borders with ______________ countries.
(A) 7 (B) 4 (C) 5 (D) 6

PART-II

Q. No. 2. Critically discuss the concept of Balance of Power in light of Hans Morgenthau’s
thought.(20)

Q. No. 3. Evaluate the relevance of the nation-state system in the context of global challenges
such as climate change, terrorism, and supranational organizations.(20)

Q. No. 4. Critically evaluate Theory of Deterrence in Indo-Pakistan context with special
reference to May 2025 conflict between the two nuclear armed neighbours.(20)

Q. No. 5. Analyse how the scope of International Relations has expanded with the rise of
non-state actors in global politics.(20)

Q. No. 6. Evaluate the effectiveness of international law in managing conflicts where there is
asymmetry in power dynamics with special reference to Israel-Gaza conflict.(20)

Q. No. 7. Is bipolarity inherently more stable than multipolarity? Discuss with reference to
classical and contemporary IR scholarship.(20)

Q. No. 8. Comment and contextualize the following statements. (10 each)
(a) Fighting terrorism is like being a goalkeeper, you can make a hundred
brilliant saves but the only shot that people remember is the one that gets past
you.
(b) State terrorism is the new threat to Global Security.

FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION FOR
RECRUITMENT TO POSTS IN BPS-17 UNDER
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, 2026

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

PART-I (MCQs)(COMPULSORY)

1. _________________ marked the turning point of the Second World War in the European theatre.
(A) Operation Barbarossa (B) Battle of Britain (C) Battle of Stalingrad (D) None of these

2. _________________ argued that globalization leads to a “borderless world” characterized by increased
interdependence among states? (A) Adam Smith (B) Thomas Friedman (C) Francis Fukuyama (D) None of these

3. Which of the following statements reflects the difference between regionalism and regionalization?
(A) Regionalism involves formal institutional arrangements; regionalization refers to the process of increasing
regional interconnections
(B) Regionalism refers to informal trade patterns, while regionalization refers to formal alliances
(C) Regionalism is primarily cultural, while regionalization is political (D) None of these

4. The four-point formula on Kashmir, often attributed to Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf, did not
include which of the following elements?
(A) Self-governance (B) Demilitarisation (C) Joint supervision mechanism (D) None of these

5. The Siachen conflict originates mainly because India and Pakistan interpret _____________ boundary point
differently.
(A) NJ 9842 (B) Point 5353 (C) K2 Meridian (D) None of these

6. _____________________ events tested NATO’s collective defense principle for the first time?
(A) The Cuban Missile Crises (B) The 9/11 terrorist attacks (C) The Korean War (D) None of these

7. ________________ played a decisive role in ending the Suez Canal Crisis through diplomatic intervention?
(A) International Court of Justice (B) NATO (C) OIC (D) None of these

8. Article ___________ of the UN Charter grants the Security Council primary responsibility for the
maintenance of international peace and security. (A) 51 (B) 26 (C) 33 (D) None of these

9. What is the main difference between UNGA resolutions and UNSC resolutions under Chapter VII?
(A) UNGA – legally binding; UNSC – non-binding (B) UNGA – non-binding; UNSC – legally binding
(C) Both are non-binding (D) None of these

10. __________________ is the primary instrument through which the IMF provides short- to medium- term
balance-of-payments assistance to member states.
(A) Poverty Reduction Growth Trust (PRGT) (B) Stand-By Arrangement (SBA)
(C) Structural Adjustment Facility (SAF) (D) None of these

11. ________________ summit of the SCO led to the inclusion of India and Pakistan as full members.
(A) 2001 Moscow (B) 2005 Astana (C) 2017 Astana (D) None of these

12. ________________ region’s overland connectivity is most central to China’s effort to bypass the Malacca
Strait under the Silk Road Economic Belt.
(A) Central Asia (B) Middle East (C) Africa (D) None of these

13. During ___________________ summit did Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) formally announce
the creation of its own development bank.
(A) 2012 Bishkek (B) 2017 Astana (C) 2025 Tianjin (D) None of these

14. The core legal basis of the India–Pakistan dispute over Sir Creek relates to differing interpretations of
which colonial document?
(A) Durand Line Agreement (1893) (B) Karachi Agreement (1949)
(C) Bombay Resolution of 1914 (D) None of these

15. _______________________ is not a key pillar of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
(A) Non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (B) Disarmament obligations for nuclear-weapon states
(C) Promotion of peaceful nuclear energy (D) None of these

16. ____________ Canal saves ships 8000 miles journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
(A) Corinth (B) Suez (C) Kiel (D) None of these

17. Putin annexed Crimea to secure port of _________ Russia’s only true major warm water port.
(A) Rijeka (B) Kronshtadt (C) Odessa (D) None of these

18. Which of the following countries is not a member of Arctic Council?
(A) Iceland (B) Russia (C) USA (D) None of these

19. Who said this: “Offshore fields, especially in the Arctic, are without any exaggeration our strategic reserve
for the twenty-first century”.
(A) President Trump (B) President Nicolas Maduro (C) President Putin (D) None of these

20. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) affirms that a signatory to the
convention has exclusive economic rights from its Shore to a limit of _________ hundred miles.
(A) Two (B) Five (C) Three (D) None of these

PART-II

Q. No. 2. Assess the implications of the revival of multipolarity for medium and small powers. How
have states such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Pakistan leveraged the shifting
structure of global power to pursue strategic autonomy or hedging strategies?(20)

Q. No. 3. How did Operation Bunyan-ul-Marsoos illustrate shifts in conventional military posture
and nuclear deterrence dynamics between India and Pakistan? Critically evaluate the
strategic, operational, and diplomatic success of Pakistan during the May 2025 Four-Day
War with reference to escalation control, signaling, and crisis-stability mechanisms.(20)

Q. No. 4. China currently controls the overwhelming majority of global rare earth mining and
processing capacity. Analyze how this near-monopoly shapes the strategic, technological,
and defense vulnerabilities of the United States and Europe. Support your discussion with
relevant examples of rare earth elements and their critical applications.(20)

Q. No. 5. Critically evaluate the effectiveness of international counter-terrorism frameworks,
focusing on UN Security Council resolutions and FATF measures. Assess their impact in
disrupting terrorist networks, citing specific examples of successes and challenges.(20)

Q. No. 6. Critically analyze the United Nations reform proposals put forward by former UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, specifically focusing on Model A and Model B for
Security Council restructuring. Discuss the key features, differences, and potential
implications of each model for the effectiveness, legitimacy, and representativeness of the
UN Security Council. In your answer, consider both the challenges and opportunities these
reforms might present for global governance.(20)

Q. No. 7. Provide the key provisions of the 2020 Doha Agreement and critically analyze the U.S.
withdrawal from Afghanistan. Evaluate whether the Doha framework functioned as a
peace settlement, an exit strategy, or a negotiated surrender. Support your discussion with
reference to power asymmetries, Afghan state capacity, and regional geopolitical
calculations.(20)

Q. No. 8. How is a trade war defined in contemporary international relations? Assess the economic
and strategic consequences of the US-China trade war. Analyze how it has affected global
trade flows, investment patterns, and technology transfer. Support your answer with
relevant examples and evidence

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