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Class 12 Political Science Previous Year: Long Questions with Answers - Security in the Contemporary World (Part - 1)

Q.1. (a) Explain any three security challenges faced by the newly independent countries of Asia and Africa after the Second World War.    [2024]
OR
(b) Explain any three components of the Indian security strategy.
Ans. (a) 
Security Challenges:
(i) The newly independent countries of Asia and Africa faced the prospect of  military conflict with neighbouring countries. Also to strengthen their internal military capabilities in order to overcome their own internal military conflict.
(ii) These countries had the fear from the neighbouring countries more than  that from the super powers.
(iii) These newly independent countries had disputes over borders and  territories or control of people and population or all of these simultaneously.
(iv) Some of these countries had the challenge of  internal threats in the form of separatist movements and socio-economic inequalities. They also faced the problem of social in justice that affects the Human Rights.
OR
(b) Indian security strategy
(i) Strengthening its own military capabilities.
(ii) To strengthen international norms and institutions to protect its security interests.
(iii) To meet security challenges within the country from the states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Jammu Kashmir.
(iv) To bring the citizens out of poverty and economic inequaltities.

Q.2. (a) Explain any three reasons for spending more on traditional security than on non-traditional security by India.    [2024]
OR
(b) Explain any three new sources of threat to security with examples.
Ans.
(a) Reasons:
(i) India has been involved in conflict with its neighbours, Pakistan in 1947-48, 1965, 1971 and 1999 and with China in 1962.
(ii) India had to update its army after the setback in 1962.
(iii) India had to face some internal separatists movements.
(iv) It had to equip itself with nuclear power to face the challenges from the neighbouring countries.
OR
(b) New Source of threat are:
(i) Terrorism – It refers to political violence that targets civilians indiscriminately. They use civilians as a weapon against national government to change a political context or condition they do not like.
Example: Plane hijacking, planting bombs at crowded places.
(ii) Violation of Human Rights – These are in the form of political, economical, social rights and the rights of colonized people or ethnic and indigenous minorities. Violation may attract the invasion by international community to defend the human rights of the people.
Example: Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, Indonesian military’s killing of people in East Timor.
(iii) Health epidemics – Due to migration, business, tourism etc. epidemics like HIV – AIDS,  bird flu, and SARS have rapidly spread across countries. By 2003, an estimated 4 crore people were infected with HIV – AIDS worldwide. Treatment of these epidemics have proved to be a major factor in driving the region backward into deeper poverty.
(iv) Global poverty
(v) Migration

Q. 3. What is meant by traditional notion of external security? Describe any two components of this type of security.
Ans. 
Traditional notion of external security is that the greatest danger to a country is from military threats.  components of external security:
(i) Deterrence and defence against external attacks
(ii) Avoidance of war
(iii) Balance of power
Detailed Answer: Traditional notion of external security means threat to security from outside. In this conception of security, the greatest danger to a country is from military threats. The source of this danger is another country which by threatening military action endangers the core values of sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. Following are the three components of the traditional notion of external security.
(a) Deterrence
(b) Defence
(c) Balance of power
Governments may choose to surrender when actually confronted by war, but they will not advertise this as the policy of the country. Therefore, security policy is concerned with preventing war, which is called deterrence and with limiting or ending war, which is 

called defence. To prevent the other side from attacking by promising to raise the costs of war to an unacceptable level and to defend itself when war actually breaks out so as to deny the attacking country its objectives and to turn back or defeat the attacking forces altogether.

Q.4. Explain balance of power as a component of traditional security policy. How could a state achieve this balance?
Ans. 
When a  country finds some bigger and stronger countries around it and takes them as a threat in the future. The bigger or stronger country may not be thinking to attack but its potential to be aggressive leads the smaller country to make some arrangements or agreement with any other country to be able to defend itself. This arrangement of developing relations to counter the threat is known as the balance of power. How to achieve the balance :
(i) To build up its own military power.
(ii) To have friendly relations with other countries to be able to face any challenge or attack.
(iii) To have a change in relations and minimising the difference and resolving the conflicts with other countries who are a threat.

Q.5. What is meant by traditional notions of internal and external security? Explain.
Or
What is meant by traditional notions of internal and external security? Describe.

Ans. Traditional Notions of Internal Security Traditional security must also concern itself with internal security. After the second World War, for the most powerful countries on the earth, internal security was more or less assured. After 1945, the Us and the soviet Union appeared to be united and could expect peace within their borders. In Europe, most of the powerful countries faced no threat from groups or communities living within those borders. 3 Traditional Notions of External Security The period after the second World War was the cold War period in which the Us led Western alliance faced the soviet—led communist alliance. The two alliances feared a military attack from each other. some European powers, in addition, continued to worry about violence in their colonies, from colonised people who wanted independence.

Q.6. Describe the security challenges faced by the newly independent countries of Asia and Africa after the Second World War.
Ans. 
Security challenges faced by the newly independent countries.
(i) The newly independent countries faced threats not only from outside their borders but also from within.
(ii) For the newly independent countries, external and internal threats posed serious challenges to their security.
(iii) some of these states are worried about threats from separatist movement within country.
(iv) Terrorism is a problem faced by maximum newly free countries from outside borders example—ISIS.
(v) newly independent countries are highly populated with low per capita income countries so facing the problem of global poverty.
(vi) newly independent countries are also facing the problem of social injustice discrimination based on caste, creed, religion which affects the human rights.

Q.7. How are the threats faced by the people in the Third World different from those faced by the people living in the First World? Support your answer with examples.
Or
What are the differences in the threats that people in the Third World faces and those living in the First World ?
Ans. 
(i) The Third World countries face the threats not only from outside their borders, but also from within. on the other hand, most of the First World countries face threats only from outside their borders.
(ii) Third World faces threats from separatist movements. There is no such threat in the First World countries.
(iii) For the newly independent Third World countries, external and internal wars posed a serious challenge to their security than the First world countries faced.
Detailed Answer : (i) The threats that people in the Third World face and those living in the First World face are different. The people of the third world face the prospect of military conflict with neighbouring countries. They also face the threat of internal military conflict.
(ii) For the newly independent Third World countries, external and internal wars posed a serious challenge to their security than the First World countries faced.
(iii) The Third World countries face the threats not only from outside their borders, but also from within. on the other hand, most of the First World countries face threats only from outside their borders.
(iv) The countries of the Third World fear from their neighbours even more than they feared the Us or soviet Union. The people of the Third World have apprehension of separatist movements which wanted to form independent countries.
(v) The people of the Third World also face the danger of poverty, health hazards and human rights.
(vi) But the people of the First World do not face such threats. They do not have the fear of external aggression as they are powerful. These countries are well developed so there are no threats of poverty and human hazards.

Q.8. Describe any three components of the traditional notion of external security.
Ans. 
Following are the three components of the traditional notion of external security :
(i) Deterrence
(ii) Defence
(iii) Balance of Power
(i) Governments may choose to surrender when actually confronted by war, but they will not advertise this as the policy of the country. Therefore, security policy is concerned with preventing war, which is called deterrence and with limiting or ending war, which is called defence.
(ii) To prevent the other side from attacking by promising to raise the costs of war to an unacceptable level and to defend itself when war actually breaks out so as to deny the attacking country its objectives and to turn back or defeat the attacking forces altogether.(iii) The third component of the traditional security policy is a balance of power. A bigger and stronger country may be a threat to its weak and small neighbouring countries. The powerful country may not attack also but is a sign that at some point of time in the future, it may choose to be aggressive. Governments are very sensitive to the balance of power between their country and other countries. They do work hard to maintain a favourable balance of power with other countries.

Q.9. What is a ‘Balance of Power’? How could a state achieve this?
Ans. 
Balance of Power is a component of traditional security policy. It means to maintain the military strength equal to that of neighbouring countries. Many countries are bigger and stronger in comparison to neighbouring countries. This is a clue to who might be a threat in the future. A neighbouring country may not attack another country. But the strength of the powerful country is a sign that at some point of time in future, it may become aggressive and attack the neighbouring country.
Governments, therefore, are very sensitive to the balance of power between their country and other countries. They do work hard to maintain a favourable balance of power with other countries, especially those close by to those with whom they have differences or those with which they have had conflicts in the past. A good part of maintaining a balance of power is to build up one’s military power, although economic and technological power areas are also important since they are the basis for military power.

Q.10. What are the objectives of military alliances? Give an example of a functioning military alliance with its specific objectives.
Ans. 
Making military alliances is a component of traditional security policy. An alliance is a coalition of states that coordinate their actions to deter or defend against military attack. For a country the objectives of military alliance are as following:
(i) The military alliances are formed with an objective to increase the effective power relative to another country or alliance.
(ii) Military alliances safeguard the vested interests of the alliance partners.
(iii) The objective of the powerful alliance partners is to make military bases in weak alliance partner state.
(iv) Weak and poor countries that cannot make supremacy militarily, seek help of the mighty one to threaten their neighbours.
(v) Alliances are based on national interests and can change when national interests change.
(vi) In the period of cold War, the world was divided into two groups–one led by the USA and the other led by the soviet Union. The purpose of USA for forming alliance was to oppose the soviet Union and check its growth. With this view, the USA backed the Islamic militants in Afghanistan against the soviet Union in 1980s.

Q.11. Nuclear weapons as deterrence or defence have limited usage against contemporary security threats to states. Explain this statement.
Ans. 
In the second World War, the USA dropped the atom bombs on two cities of Japan, Hiroshima and nagasaki. The entire world saw the devastating results of the use of nuclear weapons as mute spectator.  now, the situation has changed. Many steps have been taken to restrict the use of nuclear weapons. The nonProliferation Treaty (NPT) of 1968 was an arms control treaty in the sense that it regulated the acquisition of nuclear weapons. Those countries that had tested and manufactured nuclear weapons before 1967 were allowed to keep their weapons and those that had not done so were to give up the right to acquire them. The NPT did not abolish nuclear weapons, rather it limited the number of countries that could have them. so, now nuclear weapons have limited usage against contemporary security.

Q. 12. What is meant by non-traditional notion of security? Differentiate between the narrow and broad concept of human security.
Ans. 
Non-traditional notions of security go beyond military threats to include a wide range of threats and dangers affecting the conditions of human existence. They begin by questioning the traditional reference of security. In doing so, they also question the other three elements of security –what is being secured, from what kind of threats and approach to security. The narrow concept of human security focuses on violent threats to individuals or the protection of communities and individuals from internal violence. The broad concept of human security argues that the threat agenda should include disease and natural disasters because they kill far more people than war, genocide and terrorism combined.

Q. 13. Which among the following would you consider as traditional security concern/non-traditional security concern/ not a threat :
(i) The spread of chikungunya dengue fever
(ii) Inflow of workers from a neighbouring nation
(iii) Emergence of a group demanding nationhood for their region
(iv) Emergence of a group demanding autonomy for their region
(v) A newspaper that is critical of the armed forces in the country
Ans.
(i) non-traditional,
(ii) non-traditional
(iii) Traditional
(iv) not a threat
(v) not a threat.

The document Class 12 Political Science Previous Year: Long Questions with Answers - Security in the Contemporary World (Part - 1) is a part of the Humanities/Arts Course Political Science Class 12.
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FAQs on Class 12 Political Science Previous Year: Long Questions with Answers - Security in the Contemporary World (Part - 1)

1. What are some common security threats in the contemporary world?
Ans. Some common security threats in the contemporary world include cyber attacks, terrorism, natural disasters, and global pandemics.
2. How can individuals protect their personal information in the digital age?
Ans. Individuals can protect their personal information in the digital age by using strong, unique passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, being cautious of phishing scams, and regularly updating their security software.
3. What role do international organizations play in maintaining security in the contemporary world?
Ans. International organizations play a crucial role in maintaining security in the contemporary world by facilitating cooperation between countries, providing resources for conflict resolution, and monitoring global security threats.
4. How can governments balance national security with protecting individual freedoms and privacy rights?
Ans. Governments can balance national security with protecting individual freedoms and privacy rights by implementing transparent and accountable surveillance practices, upholding legal and ethical standards, and engaging with the public in policy-making processes.
5. How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted security measures around the world?
Ans. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased cybersecurity risks due to remote work practices, strained healthcare systems, and economic instability, prompting governments to adapt security measures to address these new challenges.
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