UPSC Prelims 2023 Q97: Current Affairs – International Conflicts & Security
Consider the following pairs:
Area of conflict mentioned in news - Country where it is located
1. Donbas - Syria
2. Kachin - Ethiopia
3. Tigray - North Yemen
How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
- (a) Only one
- (b) Only two
- (c) All three
- (d) None
Answer: (d) None
Explanation
Conflict Areas and Their Countries
| Pair | Area | Country Given | Verdict | Correct Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Donbas | Syria | WRONG | Donbas is in eastern Ukraine — the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Russia-Ukraine conflict. |
| 2 | Kachin | Ethiopia | WRONG | Kachin is a state in Myanmar — site of armed conflict between Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Myanmar military. |
| 3 | Tigray | North Yemen | WRONG | Tigray is a region in Ethiopia — site of the Tigray War (2020–2022) between Ethiopian federal forces and Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). |
All three pairs are wrongly matched → None.
Answer: (d) None.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Incorrect. 'Only one' — no conflict area is correctly matched with its country.
- (b) Incorrect. 'Only two' — Kachin is in Myanmar (not Ethiopia) and Tigray is in Ethiopia (not Yemen); all three are wrong.
- (c) Incorrect. 'All three' — Donbas is in Ukraine, Kachin in Myanmar, Tigray in Ethiopia — none matches the countries given.
- (d) CORRECT. All three pairs are incorrectly matched — the question has systematically given wrong countries for each conflict area.
Key point
Donbas = Ukraine. Kachin = Myanmar. Tigray = Ethiopia. Question pairs are all wrong (Syria, Ethiopia, Yemen). Classic UPSC conflict geography scramble. Answer = None.
Remember
Donbas is in Ukraine (not Syria), Kachin is in Myanmar (not Ethiopia), and Tigray is in Ethiopia (not North Yemen). All three conflict area-country pairs in the question are incorrectly matched.
Common mistakes
- Partially accepting any pair — Donbas (Ukraine not Syria), Kachin (Myanmar not Ethiopia), Tigray (Ethiopia not Yemen) are all clearly established conflicts.
- Confusing Tigray with Yemen — both are humanitarian crises but completely different countries; Tigray = northern Ethiopia; Houthi conflict = Yemen.
- Not knowing Kachin is in Myanmar — Kachin Independence Army conflict has persisted for decades in Myanmar's northernmost state.
Exam tip
Current conflict geography to memorise: Donbas/Luhansk/Donetsk = UKRAINE. Kachin/Chin/Rakhine = MYANMAR. Tigray/Amhara = ETHIOPIA. Cabo Delgado = MOZAMBIQUE. Sahel (Mali/Niger/Burkina) = West Africa. All three in this question are scrambled.
Sources
- ACLED — Armed Conflict Location and Event Data
- International Crisis Group — CrisisWatch: Ukraine, Myanmar and Ethiopia (2022)