IBPS Clerk Mains 2017 Paper

A. The region has been the locale for some of the bloodiest inter- and intra-state wars in the 20th century and promises to be the theatre for similar conflagrations in the foreseeable future between failing, emerging and established nuclear-armed countries.
B. This potential for conflict is exacerbated by the absence of a robust regional peace and security architecture.
C. The term "Indo-Pacific" has long been in vogue among marine biologists and ichthyologists to define the stretch of water from the tropical Indian Ocean, through the equatorial seas around the Indonesian archipelago, the South China Sea, and to the western and central Pacific Ocean.
D. For instance, in 2015 the foreign secretaries of Australia, India and Japan met ostensibly to firm up the security leg of India's "Act East" policy.
E. The term entered the geopolitical lexicon only in the early 21st century and, predictably, has proved to be far more contentious than its scientific definition.