International Relations

UPSC International Relations notes — India and its neighbourhood, groupings and agreements, major-power relations, diaspora and global institutions, for GS Paper II.

International Relations is the most news-driven part of GS Paper II. The syllabus is short; the reading is continuous. These notes give you the stable base — history, institutions, interests — so that the news has something to attach to.

What UPSC asks

Mains GS II: India and its neighbourhood; bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India; effect of policies and politics of other countries on India’s interests; the Indian diaspora; important international institutions, agencies and fora.
Prelims: memberships, headquarters, summits and agreements — almost always through current events.

How to use these notes

Pair each chapter with the month’s current affairs. For Mains, structure answers around India’s interests: security, economy, diaspora, and global standing.

India and its Neighbourhood UPSC notes on India's relations with its neighbours — Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, … 4 topics Regional and Global Groupings UPSC notes on groupings involving India — SAARC, BIMSTEC, ASEAN, SCO, BRICS, G20, Quad, IPEF and Indian Ocean … 3 topics India and the Major Powers UPSC notes on India's relations with the United States, Russia, Japan, France, the UK and the EU — strategic … 3 topics Effect of Policies of Other Countries on India UPSC notes on how the policies and politics of developed and developing countries affect India — tariffs, … 3 topics The Indian Diaspora UPSC notes on the Indian diaspora — NRI, PIO and OCI categories, waves of migration from indenture to IT, … 3 topics International Institutions UPSC notes on international institutions — the UN and its organs, Security Council reform, IMF, World Bank, … 3 topics