Modern Conflicts
Modern Conflicts – Railways GK Capsule
1. Cold-War Era to 21st Century – Timeline & Facts
| Conflict | Years | Belligerents | Flash-point / Result | Indian Angle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Korean War | 1950-53 | N. Korea + China vs S. Korea + UN (USA) | DMZ at 38th parallel; ~2.5 mn deaths | India chaired Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission (1953) |
| Vietnam War | 1955-75 | N. Vietnam (Viet-Cong) vs USA + S. Vietnam | 58 k US, 2 mn VN civilian deaths; Saigon falls 30 Apr 1975 | India recognised united VN in 1976 |
| Soviet-Afghan War | 1979-89 | USSR vs Afghan Mujahideen | USSR withdraws 15 Feb 1989; 15 k Soviets, 1 mn Afghans dead | UN Geneva Accords 1988 – India signatory |
| Iran-Iraq War | 1980-88 | Iran vs Iraq | ~1 mn killed; ends 20 Aug 1988 (UNSCR 598) | India imported 80 % oil from Iran; maintained ties with both |
| Gulf War-I (Operation Desert Storm) | 1990-91 | 34-nation coalition vs Iraq | 17 Jan 1991 air-war; 28 Feb cease-fire; 148 US combat dead | India evacuated 1.7 lac Indians via 488 Air-India flights (largest civ-evacuation) |
| Kosovo War | 1998-99 | NATO vs Yugoslavia | 78-day bombing; UNMIK formed 10 Jun 1999 | India refused NATO fly-over; advocated UN route |
| War on Terror (Afghanistan) | 2001-21 | USA + ISAF vs Taliban / Al-Qaeda | 11 Sep 2001 attacks → 7 Oct Op. Enduring Freedom; Kabul falls 15 Aug 2021 | Parliament attack 2001 linked to JeM; India built Afghan Parliament (2015) |
| Iraq War (Operation Iraqi Freedom) | 2003-11 | USA + UK + allies vs Iraq | 20 Mar 2003 invasion; Saddam caught 13 Dec 2003; US withdraw 18 Dec 2011 | India’s ONGC Videsh secured block-8 in 2001; refused troop deployment |
| Russia-Georgia War | Aug 2008 | Russia vs Georgia | 5-12 Aug; South Ossetia & Abkhazia recognised | India followed “One-Georgia” policy |
| Syrian Civil War | 2011-cont. | Govt vs FSA, ISIS, Kurds | ~5 lac dead, 6 mn refugees | India gives $25 mn aid; 1 nurse kidnapped (2014) |
| Crimea Annexation | Feb-Mar 2014 | Russia vs Ukraine | 18 Mar 2014 Crimea joins Russia (referendum) | India advocated “peaceful resolution” |
| Yemen Civil War | 2015-cont. | Saudi-led coalition vs Houthis | 1.5 lac dead; 2022 UN truce | India evacuated 4,800 (Operation Rahat, Apr 2015) |
| Nagorno-Karabakh-I (April War) | 2-16 Apr 2016 | Armenia vs Azerbaijan | 200+ killed; 4-day conflict | India supported OSCE Minsk process |
| Doklam Stand-off | 16 Jun-28 Aug 2017 | India vs China (Bhutan tri-junction) | 73-day face-off; both withdraw | Indian Army’s “Operation Trident” logistics feat |
| Nagorno-Karabakh-II | 27 Sep-10 Nov 2020 | Armenia vs Azerbaijan | Drones decisive; 5 k dead; Russia brokers cease-fire | India supplied arms to Armenia; Turkey backed AZ |
| Ukraine War (Russia invasion) | 24 Feb 2022-cont. | Russia vs Ukraine | Largest war in Europe since WWII; >10 mn displaced | Operation Ganga – 22 k Indians evacuated; India abstained 11 UNSC votes |
| Israel-Hamas War | 7 Oct 2023-cont. | Israel vs Hamas | 1,200 Israeli, 35 k+ Palestinian deaths (UN est.) | Operation Ajay – 2 flights daily; India advocates “two-state solution” |
2. Quick-Fire One-Liners (Memory Hooks)
- 38th parallel: divides Koreas since 1953 armistice.
- Tet Offensive (1968) – turning point of Vietnam War.
- Operation Frequent Wind – US helicopter evacuation from Saigon, 1975.
- Osama bin Laden killed in Abbottabad (Pakistan) by US-SEAL Team-6 on 2 May 2011.
- UNSCR 678 (1990) – authorised “all means” to free Kuwait.
- Mother of all Battles – Saddam’s phrase for Gulf War-I.
- Line of Control (LoC) term first used in 1972 Simla Agreement (Indo-Pak).
- Black September (1970) – Jordan expels PLO; leads to Munich-1972 Olympics attack.
- Operation Rahat – IAF’s Yemen rescue using C-17 Globemaster-III (2015).
- Article-5 invoked only once in NATO history – after 9/11 (2001).
- Budapest Memorandum (1994) – Russia, USA, UK pledged Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
- Minsk-II deal (Feb 2015) – failed roadmap for Ukraine peace.
- Iron Dome – Israeli air-defence; 90 % interception claimed (2023).
- S-400 Triumf – Russian missile system; India, China, Turkey are buyers.
- International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) – India’s bypass to Ukraine war trade.
3. Tables for Rapid Revision
Table-A: UN Peacekeeping – India’s Contribution
| Mission | Year | Indian Troops | Unique Fact |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNEF-I (Gaza) | 1956 | 900 | First overseas UN force |
| ONUC (Congo) | 1960 | 4,000 | Capt. G.S. Salaria – posthumous PVC (1961) |
| UNOSOM-II (Somalia) | 1993 | 5,500 | First use of IPKF doctrine |
| UNMISS (S. Sudan) | 2011-cont. | 2,400 | Largest troop contributor since 2020 |
Table-B: Nobel Peace Prizes linked to Modern Conflicts
| Year | Laureate | Conflict Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres, Yasser Arafat | Oslo Accords (Palestine-Israel) |
| 2002 | Jimmy Carter | Camp David (1978) & post-war diplomacy |
| 2009 | Barack Obama | Prague speech for nuclear-free world |
| 2021 | Dmitry Muratov (Russia) | Defence of free press during Ukraine build-up |
| 2022 | Ales Bialiatski (Belarus) | Human-rights during Ukraine war |
4. 15 Must-Know MCQs for Railway Exams
Click to expand MCQs & Answers
Q1. The armistice line that divides North and South Korea is known as
A. 17th parallel
B. 38th parallel
C. 49th parallel
D. Radcliffe line
Ans: B
Q2. In which year did the USA withdraw its last combat troops from Afghanistan?
A. 2014
B. 2016
C. 2020
D. 2021
Ans: D
Q3. The largest civilian evacuation in India’s history was carried out during
A. Gulf War-I
B. Yemen Civil War
C. Syrian Civil War
D. Ukraine War
Ans: A
Q4. “Operation Rahat” was launched by Indian Armed Forces in
A. 2014
B. 2015
C. 2016
D. 2017
Ans: B
Q5. Which resolution authorised the use of “all necessary means” to liberate Kuwait in 1990?
A. UNSCR 242
B. UNSCR 338
C. UNSCR 678
D. UNSCR 1373
Ans: C
Q6. The Crimean peninsula was annexed by Russia in
A. February 2013
B. March 2014
C. April 2015
D. May 2016
Ans: B
Q7. Who was the Indian Foreign Minister during the 1999 Kargil conflict?
A. Jaswant Singh
B. Pranab Mukherjee
C. Sushma Swaraj
D. Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Ans: A
Q8. The “Budapest Memorandum” of 1994 is related to the security assurance of
A. Iran
B. Ukraine
C. Georgia
D. Syria
Ans: B
Q9. The terror outfit responsible for the 11 September 2001 attacks was
A. Hezbollah
B. Al-Qaeda
C. ISIS
D. Boko Haram
Ans: B
Q10. Which Indian operation evacuated citizens from Ukraine in 2022?
A. Operation Sankat Mochan
B. Operation Maitri
C. Operation Ganga
D. Operation Sadbhav
Ans: C
Q11. The only time NATO invoked Article-5 was after
A. Crimea annexation
B. 9/11 attacks
C. London bombings 2005
D. Paris attacks 2015
Ans: B
Q12. The “Line of Control” term was first officially used in
A. Tashkent Agreement
B. Simla Agreement 1972
C. Lahore Declaration 1999
D. Indus Waters Treaty
Ans: B
Q13. Which country supplied Bayraktar TB-2 drones extensively used in 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war?
A. Israel
B. Turkey
C. Russia
D. USA
Ans: B
Q14. The Syrian city that became the de-facto capital of ISIS (2014-17) was
A. Damascus
B. Aleppo
C. Raqqa
D. Homs
Ans: C
Q15. India’s ONGC Videsh secured oil exploration rights in Iraq’s
A. Block-1
B. Block-8
C. Block-12
D. Rumaila field
Ans: B
5. Mini-Revision Card (Fit-in-Pocket)
- 1950-53 – Korean War → 38th parallel DMZ
- 1979-89 – USSR in Afghanistan → US-Pak backed Mujahideen
- 1990-91 – Desert Storm → UNSCR 678; India evacuates 1.7 lac
- 2001 – 9/11 → Op. Enduring Freedom; Article-5 invoked
- 2003 – Iraq War → Saddam caught 13 Dec 2003
- 2014 – Crimea → Russia annexes; Budapest memo breached
- 2020 – NK-II → Drones change war; 44-day conflict
- 2022 – Ukraine → Op. Ganga; India abstains UNSC
- 2023 – Israel-Hamas → Op. Ajay; two-state solution India stand
BETA
