 Dear aspirants, we are happy to announce that Shankar IAS Academy is conducting all India online free mock test on 20th September 2020 and 27th September 2020. The link for registration is given in the description section as well as in the comment section. We request the aspirants to make use of this opportunity for the upcoming problems 2020. Welcome to the Hindu News Analysis by Shankar IAS Academy for the date 13th September 2020. The list of news articles along with the page numbers of five different editions is given here for your reference. Let us now begin our analysis. This news article discusses about Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the light of recent events. It also tries to explain how Shanghai Cooperation Organization provides platform for solving the bilateral disputes between countries. So let us see all these aspects today in our analysis. The relevant syllabus is given here for your reference. Let us have a brief idea about Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Know that the formation of SCO was declared in 2001 in Shanghai in China as an intergovernmental multilateral platform. Previously it was called the Shanghai Five and it had five members namely China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajkistan. The Shanghai Five was established in 1996 mainly to deal with the boundary issues between China, Russia and the newly independent five states of central Asian region. Among these five newly independent states, three of them were Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Tajkistan that share boundaries with China and they carried the legacy of unsettled Soviet borders. The Shanghai Five evolved into Shanghai Cooperation Organization after the inclusion of Uzbekistan and the group in the year 2001. Currently the Shanghai Cooperation Organization consists of eight full members. As you can see in this map they are India, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Tajkistan and Uzbekistan. It has four observer states which are Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia. And then these are the dialogue partners which are Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey and Sri Lanka. Note that among the five republics of the Central Asia, only Turkmenistan has not joined SCO as a member country. Here note that India became a member in the year June 2017. If you look at this news article it is incorrectly mentioned as 2015 so please take a note. The Heads of State Council is the SCO's highest decision making body. It provides for meetings at the levels of Heads of Parliament, the Security Council's secretaries, then the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Defence, etc. Note that SCO has two permanent bodies. They are the SCO Secretariat and the Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure in short called RATS. The SCO Secretariat is located at Beijing in China and SCO RATS is based in Tashkent in the country of Uzbekistan. In this, SCO RATS is intended to facilitate co-ordination and interaction between the competent authorities of the SCO member states in the fight against terrorism, extremism and separatism. And since becoming a member, India has been participating in the activities of SCO RATS. The important document of SCO is the SCO Charter which lists the organization's objective or main goals. According to it, SCO aims for strengthening the mutual trust and neighborliness among member states, then promotion of cooperation in many spheres. It also calls for making joint efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security and stability in the region and moving towards the establishment of a democratic, fair and rational, new international political and economic order. So from the objective, it is clear that SCO provides a platform for member states to discuss their differences. Now let's see how SCO played a role in conflict resolution among countries and how it acts as a platform for duration cooperation. First conflict resolution happened between China, Russia and Central Asian republics which we saw in the beginning. Meeting of the Shanghai Five in 1996 resulted in an agreement between China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajkistan. It is the agreement on confidence building in the military field along the border areas. This agreement provided for the mutual reduction of military forces on their common borders in the year 1997. And according to this news article, this agreement subsequently also helped to push the Central Asian countries to resolve some of their boundary disputes. Second, it helped to develop a personal bond between Russia and China, especially between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. This happened when the western countries and NATO countries placed heavy sanctions against Russia for its actions in Crimea. That is the annexation of Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine there 2014. And at that time, China came to Russia's aid where it signed a 30-year long $4 billion gas pipeline framework agreement with Russia. In turn, this also helped China in its Belt and Road Initiative as Russia supports this initiative. But if you see, Russia is not a part of BRI, so remember this. Also India is not a part of BRI, but if you see BRI has gained the importance in SCO because it became a part of SCO declarations. So this bonding between Russia and China is important in the context of Eurasian cooperation in a region that is rich with energy resources. Even with respect to India, SCO has been a comfortable platform for dispute resolutions with Pakistan. You know that India and Pakistan were granted the full member status at SCO together after the Heads of State Council meeting that was held in the year 2017 at Astana, which is the capital of Kazakhstan. You just have an idea that since March 2019, Astana has called us Noor Sultan. So joining SCO is part of India's strategic autonomy and multi-alignment principle. See it is an important point. Why? Because India is also a part of QUAD, which is a totally contrast group when you compare it with Shanghai Cooperation Organization. So it shows India's principle of multi-alignment. See India and Pakistan is a hot topic in the international arena as we know that since 2014, Indian Pakistan have cut all ties, talks and trade with each other. India even refused to attend the SAC summit in 2016 after the Uri attack. But even at this soaring relation between the countries, both countries' leadership have consistently attended all meetings of SCO's three councils, which are the Heads of State, Heads of Government, Council of Foreign Ministers. Additionally, Indian Pakistani armed forces even take part in military and anti-terrorism exercises together as a part of SCO RATs. Then both Indian Pakistan are also a part of SCO Afghanistan contact group as well. This group is to discuss the course of Afghanistan's future and as we know both Indian Pakistan have differing opinion or approach regarding Afghanistan's future. If you see Pakistan utilizes militant groups including the Afghan Taliban as strategic proxies, while India uses its soft power influence among Afghans. Apart from all these, SCO hosts have also encouraged members to use the SCO platform to discuss differences on the sidelines in the past and even in the current scenarios. For example, Indian Pakistan held the first talks after the Mumbai attacks on the sidelines of SCO summit at Astana in the year 2009. Then in 2015, Indian Prime Minister met the then Pakistani Prime Minister at the SCO summit in Ufa, which resulted in a joint statement by both the countries. But after that, there have been no bilateral meetings between Indian Pakistani leaders on the sidelines of SCO. Even after the Pulwama attack that happened last year, SCO officials often expressed the hope to resolve issues between India-Pakistan through dialogue. In this manner only, you can see that the SCO has played an important role in the five-point consensus agreement between India and China, which we discussed yesterday. Indian-Chinese external affairs ministers negotiated the agreement, which will lead to a disengagement process between Indian and Chinese troops along the line of actual control. And this happened in Moscow that is hosted by Russia. So, the SCO hosts Russia encouraged and facilitated meetings between the defense ministers and the foreign ministers of both the countries to discuss the standoff at the line of actual control based on the SCO charter. And as we saw already, the charter provides a comfortable platform for building mutual trust and expanding cooperation. Through this common ground is found in the dispute and eventually it creates conditions for dialogue between the countries. So, here we just have to wait and see whether like other examples that we saw earlier, if the SCO coordinated India-China agreement attains its goals or not. So, this is all about the discussion of this news article. In this news article, try to know about Shanghai Cooperation Organization from Prillam's perspective and then try to know about the importance of how Shanghai Cooperation Organization provides a platform for solving the bilateral disputes between its member countries. Now, have a look at this practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. Next, let us take up this news article from FAQ column. It talks about the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. See, we know that the government had cancelled the registrations of more than 20,000 NGOs citing national interest as a reason ever since the government came into power in 2014. And remember that we are discussed elaborately on FCRA in our 7th September news analysis. There we discussed what is FCRA, its objectives. Then we also discussed on who can and who cannot receive foreign contribution, then for whom it is applicable, then what are the methods through which the permission to receive foreign contributions is obtained, etc. Today in this discussion, we will see what are the circumstances in which an FCRA license gets cancelled. And then we will also see on what account the license gets suspended. Know that the central government has the power to suspend or cancel the certificate of FCRA given to an entity. First, we will talk about cancellation. See under section 14 of FCRA, the government of India can cancel an FCRA license by an order. If it is satisfied after making such an inquiry, as it may deem fit. Now, what are the circumstances under which the central government can cancel the license? Firstly, if the holder of the certificate has made an incorrect or a false statement in or in relation to the application for the grant of registration or renewal of certificate. Secondly, if the holder of the certificate has violated any of the terms and conditions of the certificate or renewal. Thirdly, if the central government sees it is necessary to cancel the certificate in public interest. Next, the central government can cancel the certificate if the holder of certificate has violated any of the provisions of this act or rules or any order related to FCRA. And finally, the central government can also cancel the certificate if the holder of the certificate has not been engaged in any reasonable activity in its chosen field for the benefit of the society for two consecutive years or if it has become defunct. So, these are the circumstances under which the government can cancel the FCRA certificate. And here it should be remembered that any person whose certificate has been cancelled under this section is not eligible for registration or grant or prior permission for a period of three years from the date of cancellation of such certificate. So, the entities have to wait for a period of three years. Also know that before cancelling the certificate, the government must give the person concerned a reasonable opportunity of being heard. So, these are the points that you need to know related to the cancellation of FCRA license. Now, let us see about suspension of FCRA license. Know that the central government has the power to suspend the FCRA certificate as per the provisions of section 13 of FCRA 2010. See as per this section, the central government may by order in writing suspend the certificate of FCRA for a period of not exceeding 180 days which is approximately six months. It can do so if it is satisfied that there is a pending consideration of the question of cancelling the certificate on any of the grounds that is mentioned in section 14. Now, what happens if the certificate is suspended? Know that a person or entity whose certificate has been suspended cannot receive any foreign contribution during the period of suspension of certificate. But here if the central government considers appropriate, then it can allow receipt of foreign contribution by such person on such terms and conditions as the central government may specify. Also the entity whose license is suspended should utilize the foreign contribution in its custody with the prior approval of the central government as it may prescribe. So, these are the points that you need to know related to the suspension of FCRA license. So, try to read this news article in continuation with the 7th September news article analysis which we did on this FCRA act. In this regard, we have another news article on this same subject which is FCRA. It tells about a clarification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on the FCRA nod given to PM Cares Fund. Here have an idea that PM Cares is a public charitable trust that has been set up under the name Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief and Emergency Situations Fund and it was set up to have a dedicated national fund with a primary objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation. Now with regards to this Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, the Ministry of Home Affairs has clarified that it has the power to exempt any person or association or organization other than a political party or candidate for election from the provisions of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act of 2010 in public interest. And using these powers, the central government had exempted Prime Minister's National Relief Fund from all the provisions of FCRA. Similarly, the entities created by the central and the state government orders or any entity which is fully controlled and owned by the central or state governments were all exempted from the FCRA requirements and even the audits by the Comptroller and Auditor General recently. And further, if you see the PM Cares Fund was granted exemption through a central government order in the month of March 2020. So, this news article is basically about the clarification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on the FCRA nod given to PM Cares Fund. This is all about the discussion of both these news articles related to Foreign Contribution Regulation Act of 2010. Now, have a look at this practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. This news article discusses about COVID-19 reinfection. It says that the scientific community is having a debate over how long this COVID-19 immunity lasts. In this context, let us discuss in brief about the human body immunity and its two important forms. See, the immune system in human body fights the germs and foreign substances on the skin in the tissues of the body and even in bodily fluids such as blood. The immune system is made up of two parts. One is the innate or the general immune system and the next one is adaptive or specialized immune system. These two immune systems work closely together and take on different tasks. First, let us look at innate immune system. It is the body's first line of defense against germs which are entering into human body. It responds in the same way to all the germs and foreign substances. So, it is also referred to as the non-specific immune system. This innate immune system acts very quickly. For instance, it makes sure that the bacteria that have entered the skin through a small wound are detected and destroyed on the spot within a few hours. But the innate immune system has only limited power to stop germs from spreading. It consists of protection offered by the skin and the mucous membranes and the protection offered by the immune system cells that is the different cells and proteins. Now, coming to the adaptive immune system, it takes over if the innate immune system is not able to destroy the germs. It specifically targets the type of germ that is causing the infection. But to do that, it first needs to identify the germ. This means that it is slower to respond than the innate immune system. But when it does, it is more accurate. It also has the advantage of being able to remember the germs. So, the next time a known germ is encountered, the adaptive immune system can respond faster. And this memory is also the reason why there are some illnesses you can only get once in your life because afterwards, your body becomes immune to that particular illness. It may take a few days for the adaptive immune system to respond the first time it comes into contact with the germ. But if the next time the germ is encountered, then the body will react immediately. So, the second infection is usually not even noticed or if at all it is noticed, it will be least milder. You know that the adaptive immune system is made up of T lymphocytes and then B lymphocytes. The T lymphocytes are found in the tissues between the body cells and B lymphocytes are also found in the tissue between the body cells and then in the antibodies in the blood and other bodily fluids. This is in brief about the human body immunity and its two important forms which are the innate immune system and the adaptive immune system. Now have a look at this practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. This news article talks about the Singapore Convention on Mediation which came into force yesterday that is on 12th of September 2020. Know that the Singapore Convention is also called as the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements resulting from mediation. And this UN treaty is the first UN treaty to be named after Singapore. You know that mediation means a process whereby parties attempt to reach an amicable settlement of their disputes with the assistance of a third person who is lacking the authority to impose a solution upon the parties to the dispute. So, this third person or third persons are called as the mediators. Now coming back to this Singapore Convention, it is a uniform and efficient framework for international settlement agreements resulting from mediation. It applies to international settlement agreements concluded by parties to resolve commercial dispute. It will facilitate international trade and commerce by enabling disputing parties to easily enforce and invoke settlement agreements across borders. So, the businesses will benefit from mediation as an additional dispute resolution option to litigation and arbitration and settling the cross border disputes. See as of 1st September 2020, this Singapore Convention has 53 signatories which includes countries like USA, China and India. Since the Convention has come into force, businesses that are seeking enforcement of a mediated settlement agreement across borders can do so by applying directly to the courts of countries that have signed and ratified the treaty. This Convention is expected to save time and legal costs which is especially important for businesses in times of the present uncertainty like the COVID-19 pandemic. More importantly, now the mediation can be relied on to settle the cross border commercial disputes because if you see the mediated settlement agreements can be enforced more readily by the courts of contracting parties to the Convention and may also be invoked by a party as a defense against a claim. So, this will facilitate the growth of international commerce and it will promote the use of mediation around the world. So, this conciliatory nature of mediation that is the peacemaking nature also helps to preserve the commercial relationships despite the disputes. Thus, it reduces the instances where a dispute leads to termination of commercial relationships. So, ultimately it will facilitate the growth of international commerce. Since India is also a signatory to this Singapore Convention on Mediation, it will facilitate the growth of commerce for India as well. This is in brief about the discussion of this Singapore Convention on Mediation that you need to know from exam perspective. So, easily you can remember Singapore Convention is related to mediation since it is the first human treaty to be named after Singapore. Now, have a look at this practice question. Let us move on to the next news article. This news article talks about the recent hypersonic cruise vehicle test done by the Defense Research and Development Organization. In this regard, we are discussed about the ballistic missiles and cruise missiles on our 8th September news analysis. Today, we will discuss on hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle which has been developed by DRDO. See hypersonic missiles are missiles which travels at speeds in excess of 5 times greater than the speed of sound that is Mach 5 or more. For your understanding, the speeds are given here for your reference like subsonic, transonic, supersonic, hypersonic, high hypersonic, ultrasonic. Here note that the minimum speed of hypersonic missile should be Mach 5 or more. Mach 5 is approximately 6,150 kilometer per hour. At present, if you see, there are two types of hypersonic systems which are called boost glide and scramjets. Scramjets are also called as supersonic combustion ramjet. In our 8th September, the Hindu news analysis, we discussed about the scramjet engine. See, it is a ramjet engine in which the air flow through the engine remains supersonic. You can refer to the speed here where the speed of supersonic is between Mach 1.2 to Mach 5. A scramjet engine uses air breathing technology. That means it collects air from the atmosphere as it travels and then it mixes it with the fuel which creates the supersonic combustion of more than Mach 2. But if you see, the cruiser's flight will be at a hypersonic speed of Mach 6 to 7. Additionally, note that the scramjet technology also helps in faster civilian aviation and low-cost satellite launches. So, both these are the main advantages of using the scramjet technology. Now, what is the aim of this hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle mission by DRDO? See, this mission aimed to develop a scramjet engine and its ignition and to sustain the ignition on ethylene fuel and also to generate maximum energy from the engine. It also aimed to develop materials to take care of the high temperatures that occur due to air friction on the leading edges of the cruiser's wings, tail surface and nose tip, etc. And another aim was to control this HSTDV with minimum dragon, maximum thrust. Now, let us see how it worked. First, know that the launch vehicle used for HSTDV mission was derived from Agni-1 missile. That means the HSTDV cruiser's vehicle was mounted on this Agni-1 missile where the Agni-1 missile took this HSTDV mission to a required altitude. And once it attained the required speed, the cruise vehicle was ejected out of the launch vehicle. So, here when the launch vehicle reached an altitude of 30 kilometer, the air intake ducts in the scramjet engine opened. Then the launch vehicle separated from the HSTDV cruise vehicle. Also, the cruise vehicle's nose cone split into two and fell off and the heat shield covering the cruiser was also discarded or separated because it was not required anymore at this altitude. Then what happened was the air from the atmosphere was sucked into the scramjet engine's combustion chamber and this ignited the fuel and the scramjet engine went into action. So, this is how this entire setup worked. But the interesting point to note here is that all these events took place in just microseconds as planned by DRDO. The HSTDV flew for the next 20 seconds at a hypersonic speed and it fell into Bay of Bengal. So, this is the working of this HSTDV mission. This is all about the discussion of this news article. From this news article, try to know about the advantages of the hypersonic missile which is a value addition to India's defense capabilities. Now, have a look at this practice question. Let us move on to the practice questions discussion session. Look at this first question about Shanghai Cooperation Organization. It is a two statement question and you need to choose those statements or statements that are incorrect. Look at the first statement. It tells that its member states are eight South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation members. This statement is incorrect. See both Shanghai Cooperation Organization and SARC have eight member states. Apart from India and Pakistan, the remaining six members of SCO are not members of SARC or simply remember China is not a member of SARC. If you know that, it is easy to identify that the first statement is incorrect. Now, look at the second statement. It tells that India is the founding member of SCO. This statement is also incorrect. Why? Because during our discussion, we saw that SCO was also called Shanghai Five previously. India was an observer and it was made a member in 2017 only. So, it is not a founding member of SCO. So, both the statements are incorrect here and this question demands you to choose those statements or statements that are incorrect. Be careful when you read the question. So, the correct answer to this question is option C both 1 and 2. This question is about Foreign Contribution Regulation Act of 2010. It is a two statement question and you need to choose those statement or statements that are correct. Look at the first statement. It tells that the government of India can suspend the certificate of FCRA for a period of not exceeding 360 days. It is incorrect. We saw during our discussion that it is 180 days, roughly 6 months not 360 days. Look at the second statement. It tells that a person whose FCRA certificate got cancelled is not eligible for registration or grant or prior permission for a period of 3 years from the date of cancellation of certificate. Yes, this statement is correct. So, the correct answer to this question is option B 2 1 B. This is again two statement question based on Foreign Contribution Regulation Act of 2010. Look at the first statement. It tells that both Prime Minister's National Relief Fund that is PMNRF and PM CARES Fund are exempted from all FCRA provisions making them eligible to receive foreign contributions. Yes, this statement is correct. We also saw a news article in this regard today where the Ministry of Home Affairs clarified the same. Now, look at the second statement. It tells that entities fully controlled and owned by the central or state governments are not exempted from FCRA requirements. This statement is incorrect because any entity fully controlled and owned by the central or the state governments are exempted from FCRA requirements. So, the second statement is incorrect here. Hence, the correct answer to this question is option A 1 only since you need to choose those statement or statements that are correct. This question is regarding the immune system in human body. It is again a two statement question. Look at the first statement. It tells that the innate immune system is body's first line of defense against germs which responds in the same way to all germs and foreign substances. Yes, this statement is correct. It is non-specific as we saw during our discussion. Now, look at the second statement. The adaptive immune system made up of T lymphocytes and B lymphocytes specifically targets the type of germ that is causing the infection. Yes, this statement is also correct because of this adaptive immune system. If a particular illness occurs in a human body, the adaptive immune system will immediately react. So, the second infection usually goes unnoticed or if at all it is noticed, it will be milder. So, the second statement is also correct here. Hence, the correct answer for this question is option C both 1 and 2 since you need to choose those statement or statements that are correct. Now, look at this question about United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements resulting from mediation. You need to choose those statements that are correct. Look at the first statement. It tells that it is known as Singapore Convention. Yes, this statement is correct. In fact, it is the first UN treaty named after Singapore. Now, look at the second statement. It tells that it does not apply to settlement agreements relating to family inheritance or employment law. Yes, this statement is also correct. During our discussion, we saw that this convention will apply to international commercial settlement agreements resulting from mediation. So, it is only for commerce. So, the second statement is correct here. Now, look at the third statement. It tells that India has ratified the convention. This statement is incorrect. Why? Because India is only a signatory to this convention as we saw during our discussion. This convention has been ratified by six countries so far, Singapore, Fiji, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Belarus and Ecuador and 53 countries are signatories, among which India is also one. So, the third statement goes incorrect here. If you know that the third statement is incorrect, you can easily arrive at the answer, which is option B 1 and 2 1 B. Now, look at this question about hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle mission, that is the HS-TDV mission. Recently seen in news, it is again a two statement question and you need to choose those statements that are correct. Look at the first statement. It tells that this mission used an HS-TDV with biopropellant system of liquid fuel and liquid oxidizer. This statement is incorrect. Why? Because during our discussion, we saw that this mission used scramjet technology. It did not use biopropellant system. So, the first statement is incorrect here. Now, look at the second statement. It tells that HS-TDV mission is a program of defense research and development organization of India. Yes, this is a correct statement. So, the correct answer to this question is option B 2 1 B, since you need to choose those statement or statements that are correct. This question is a map based question. We have a relevant news article today, which tells that Bahrain will be the fourth country to normalize its ties with Israel. The background of this issue is the Israel-Palestine conflict, which is basically a conflict over the territory. The three Arab countries, which have already normalized ties with Israel are Egypt, Jordan and UAE. In 1979, Israel and Egypt concluded their peace treaty and in 1994, Jordan concluded a peace treaty. And very recently in the previous month, that is on August 2020, UAE made a peace deal with Israel, which was brokered by the United States of America. Now, this news article tells that Bahrain will become the fourth country to normalize its ties with Israel. So, there is a speculation that Saudi Arabia, which is the voice of the Arab world, will also normalize its ties with Israel in the near future. To know more about the background of the Israel-Palestine conflict, we request the viewers to watch 16th August, the Hindu news analysis, where we discussed about the background of the Israel-Palestinian conflict in the recently concluded Israel-UAE peace deal. Now, look at this question. The question is, which of the following countries shared their border with Persian Gulf? Syria, Iran, Bahrain and Israel. As you can see in this map, those countries which shared their borders with Persian Gulf are Oman at the tip, which is called the Musandam Peninsula here. Next, the country of United Arab Emirates, then Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq and Iran. So, the correct answer here is option D, 2 and 3 only, which is Iran and Bahrain. Syria and Israel shared their borders with Mediterranean Sea. This question about Partilateral Security Dialogue, also called QUART and Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise has been framed based on this news article. This news article speaks about the logistics agreements signed by India with few countries previously and those possible logistics agreements, which India will likely sign with countries such as Russia, UK and Vietnam in the future. Why? Because recently India concluded a logistics support agreement with Japan. With this, now India has logistics agreements with all the QUART countries. And if you look at this news article, it also tells that the utility of these agreements will be visible at the next edition of Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise, that is scheduled to be held in November. So, in this context, try to know about QUART and Malabar Exercise, which countries are part of both these multilateral arrangements. From this picture, you can see that the countries that are part of QUART are India, Japan, United States and Australia. If you leave Australia, the other three countries are a part of Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise. And there is recent news that Australia might likely be included in this Malabar Naval Exercise in the near future. As of now, only India, Japan and US are a part of Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise. So, remember both these facts from prelims perspective. Now, look at this question, which of the following countries are part of neither Quadrilateral Security Dialogue nor Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise? The countries given here are USA, China, Australia, Russia. Out of these four, USA is a part of both QUART and Malabar Trilateral Naval Exercise and Australia is a part of QUART. But if you look at China and Russia, they are not a part of both these multilateral arrangements. So, the correct answer here is Option D, 2 and 4-1. Now, let us look at this practice main question. Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a grouping which works for regional stability and cooperation and provides a platform for member states to discuss their differences, explain with suitable examples. It is a 10 marks question and you need to answer the question in 150 words. Please post your answers in the comment section. We shall review and give suitable suggestions and feedbacks within a reasonable time frame. With this, we come to the end of the analysis of all the news articles taken up for today's discussion and also the practice questions discussion session. 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