Q9. India–Africa digital partnership is achieving mutual respect, co-development and long-term institutional partnerships. Elaborate. (Answer in 150 words) – 10 marks

Introduction
The India–Africa relationship has entered a digital era. Both regions face similar challenges—financial inclusion, digital identity, e-governance, and skilling. India, with its digital public infrastructure, and Africa, with its young, tech-driven population, have forged a mutually respectful partnership rooted in South–South cooperation, co-development, and institution building.

Areas of Co-Development

• Digital Infrastructure & Connectivity: From the Pan-African e-Network Project to e-VidyaBharati & e-ArogyaBharati (e-VBAB), India has linked 48 African nations for tele-education and tele-medicine.
• Fintech & Payments: India’s UPI model is being piloted in Mauritius, Nigeria, and South Africa, expected to cut remittance costs by up to 70%.
• Governance & Identity Systems: African nations like Ghana and Uganda are adopting Aadhaar-inspired digital ID systems. Over 2,000 African bureaucrats have been trained in digital governance under ITEC since 2018.
• Institutional Partnerships: Centres of Excellence in IT (Lesotho, Ghana) and proposals for an India–Africa Virtual University highlight the long-term approach.
  

Analysis

• Mutual respect: Partnership is demand-driven, not donor-driven.
• Inclusive co-development: Indian solutions like UPI, Aadhaar, and tele-medicine are affordable and scalable.
• Strategic balance: Offers Africa an alternative to Western conditionalities or Chinese debt-heavy digital projects.

Way Forward

1. Deepen digital capacity building through joint skilling missions in AI, cyber security, and digital agriculture.
2. Strengthen digital infrastructure financing via concessional credit lines and PPP models.
3. Expand fintech corridors for diaspora remittances and SME trade facilitation.
4. Institutionalise India–Africa digital summits for periodic policy alignment.
5. Promote open-source collaboration so that digital sovereignty of African partners is respected.

Conclusion
India–Africa digital partnership goes beyond technology transfer; it is a co-created model of equity and innovation. By expanding institutional linkages and focusing on inclusivity, both partners can shape a sustainable digital future, setting a global example of South–South collaboration.

Q.10 “With the waning of globalization, the post-Cold War world is becoming a site of sovereign nationalism.” Elucidate. (Answer in 150 words) – 10 marks

Introduction
After the Cold War, globalization was celebrated as a universal good—marked by WTO-led free trade, global supply chains, liberal financial flows, and interdependence. However, in the past decade, successive shocks—2008 global financial crisis, US–China trade wars, COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia–Ukraine conflict—have exposed vulnerabilities. This has accelerated the shift towards sovereign nationalism, where states prioritize strategic autonomy, domestic resilience, and national identity over hyper-global integration.

How Globalization is Waning

• Economic Fragmentation: Multilateralism under WTO is weakening; trade wars and sanctions dominate. The US “decoupling” from China and friend-shoring of supply chains show retreat from free trade.
• Technological Bifurcation: US curbs on Chinese 5G and semiconductor exports mark a splintering of global tech ecosystems.
• Pandemic Lessons: COVID-19 revealed dependence risks—nations restricted exports of vaccines, PPE, and food.
• Geopolitical Tensions: Russia–Ukraine war disrupted global energy and wheat supplies, forcing countries to rethink globalization’s promise of stability.

Sovereign Nationalism Rising

• Economic Nationalism: India’s Atmanirbhar Bharat emphasizes local manufacturing while selectively engaging global trade. Similarly, US “CHIPS and Science Act” subsidizes domestic semiconductor production.
• Identity Politics: Brexit reflected reclaiming sovereignty over borders, migration, and regulation.
• Strategic Autonomy: EU now speaks of “open strategic autonomy,” balancing globalization with resilience in critical minerals, defence, and energy.
• Food & Energy Security: India restricted wheat and rice exports; EU diversified energy away from Russian gas.

Way Forward
The world is not in de-globalization but re-globalization—where selective integration coexists with stronger national safeguards. A balanced approach must:

• Protect critical supply chains (food, energy, semiconductors).
• Reform WTO and multilateral institutions for equitable trade.
• Strengthen regional blocs (e.g., BIMSTEC, AU–EU partnership).

Conclusion
The post-Cold War promise of seamless globalization is waning, replaced by a world where sovereign nationalism tempers interdependence. States are redefining globalization on their own terms—resilient, selective, and sovereignty-conscious, rather than borderless.

Q.19 “Energy security constitutes the dominant kingpin of India’s foreign policy, and is linked with India’s overarching influence in Middle Eastern countries.” How would you integrate energy security with India’s foreign policy trajectories in the coming years? (Answer in 250 words) – 15 marks

Introduction
Energy security is a critical pillar of India’s foreign policy. India imports approximately 85% of its crude oil and 45% of its LNG; a significant share comes from the Middle East. Energy stability imports price stability which is vital to India’s development. As a result, India’s strategic outreach to the Middle East—from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to Iran and Israel—is deeply interwoven with its energy imperatives.

Current Energy–Foreign Policy Intersection

1. Diversified Energy Basket:
   • India sources oil from Saudi Arabia (15–20%), Iraq, UAE, and Kuwait, while also importing LNG from Qatar, Australia, and the U.S.
   • India’s “South Asia–Middle East–Europe (SAMEER)” pipeline (proposal) aims to transit crude from the Persian Gulf to India via Pakistan, offering diversification.
2. Strategic Partnerships:
   • India holds long-term India–UAE strategic energy partnership (2022) for 10-year crude supply and investing in green hydrogen.
   • With Saudi Arabia and OPEC+, India negotiates pricing and capacities, ensuring market stability.
   • Iran–India ties continue through the Chabahar port investment and oil payments under rupee–rial mechanism to bypass sanctions.
3. Renewable & Hydrogen Transition:
   • India’s Green Strategic Partnership with UAE (2022) and cooperation on green hydrogen exports promote both energy transition and geopolitical alignment.
   • Investments in Middle East’s renewables (e.g., solar in Oman) support India’s transition and energy security.

Way Forward: Integrating Energy Security into Foreign Policy

1. Strategic Energy Diplomacy:
   • Deepen energy diplomacy with long-term supply agreements, equity in fields, and participation in OPEC+ for demand signals and price stability.
2. Regional Energy Corridors:
   • Explore India–Gulf electrified electricity network, cross-border hydrogen corridors, and revival of the SAMEER pipeline with Pakistan.
3. Green Energy Transition:
   • Invest in green hydrogen, CCUS (carbon capture/utilisation), and renewables in partnership with UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, leveraging their solar potential and Indian technology.
4. Energy Infrastructure Financing:
   • Use India–Middle East Investment Fund for joint investments in energy infrastructure—refineries, LNG, hydrogen, and renewables, ensuring energy-security aligned returns.
5. Institutionalizing Energy Diplomacy:
   • Establish an Inter-Ministerial Energy–Foreign Policy Forum to align Energy Ministry, MEA, Ministry of Power, and Finance Ministers on projects like SAMEER, hydrogen corridors, and global governance structures (I2U2, IPEF).

Conclusion
Energy security is not just an economic imperative—it’s a strategic linchpin that defines India’s external relations, especially with the Middle East. By integrating energy diversification, green transition collaboration, infrastructure cooperation, and multi-stakeholder diplomacy, India can transform energy diplomacy into a force multiplier for its geopolitical clout and developmental resilience.

Q.20 “The reform process in the United Nations remains unresolved, because of the delicate imbalance of East and West and the entanglement of the USA vs. Russo–Chinese alliance.” Examine and critically evaluate the East–West policy confrontations in this regard. (Answer in 250 words) – 15 marks

Introduction
The United Nations was created in 1945 to safeguard collective security and provide equal representation. Yet, reform—especially of the Security Council (UNSC)—remains unresolved. The optimism after the Cold War for a cooperative multilateral order has eroded, replaced by renewed East–West divides, particularly between the USA and its allies versus the Russo–Chinese bloc.

East–West Policy Confrontations

• UNSC Paralysis: Russia’s vetoes on Ukraine (2022–24) and China’s vetoes on North Korea/Myanmar sanctions show how great power rivalry blocks consensus.
• Expansion of UNSC: Global South demands permanent seats (India, Brazil, South Africa, AU). The US supports “in principle,” while China/Russia resist India and Japan, citing “regional sensitivities.”
• Normative Clashes:
  • USA/West: Liberal values—human rights, democracy, R2P.
  • Russia/China: Sovereignty, non-interference, regime security; shielding allies like Syria, Venezuela.
• Institutional Gridlock: Disputes spill into budgets, peacekeeping, climate finance, making reform near-impossible.

Critical Evaluation

• Why unresolved? UNSC reform is hostage to veto politics. USA protects its primacy, while China and Russia resist dilution of power.
• Implications:
  • UN’s legitimacy crisis—failing to reflect 21st-century realities.
  • Rise of parallel forums—BRICS+, G20, SCO—showing states bypassing UN deadlocks.
  • Risk of fragmentation of multilateralism.

Way Ahead for Reform

1. Gradual UNSC Expansion: Begin with adding more elected non-permanent seats, moving incrementally towards permanent membership for G4 + Africa.
2. Restrain Veto Power: Proposals like the “French–Mexican initiative” (2015) to restrict veto in cases of mass atrocities need adoption.
3. Regional Consensus: Build stronger coalitions—Uniting for Consensus group must converge with G4/African Union to prevent deadlock.
4. Strengthen UNGA: Use majority resolutions and moral legitimacy of UNGA to pressure the P5, even if UNSC remains paralysed.
5. Global South Leadership: India, Brazil, South Africa, and AU must continue advocacy, leveraging forums like G20 and BRICS to press for reform.

Conclusion
UN reform remains hostage to East–West divides, but reform is not optional—it is essential for legitimacy. A step-by-step approach—incremental UNSC expansion, veto restraint, and Global South coalitions—can help revive multilateralism and prevent the UN from sliding into irrelevance in a multipolar world.