Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists: List-I (Regional block): A. ASEAN, B. CIS, C. EU, D. OPEC List-II (Headquarters): 1. Brussels, 2. Vienna, 3. Minsk, 4. Jakarta

Q: What is the answer to CAPF 2022 Paper I Q118?

A. Correct — A, A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2. Take the four pairings one by one rather than trusting the code. ASEAN keeps its secretariat in Jakarta, where it has been since 1976, so A goes with 4. The Commonwealth of Independent States, formed in December 1991 as the Soviet Union dissolved, placed its executive committee in Minsk, and the founding agreement was signed in Belarus, so B goes with 3. The European Union's Commission and Council sit in Brussels, which is the city the question means by its headquarters, so C goes with 1. OPEC moved its secretariat from Geneva to Vienna in 1965 and has been there since, so D goes with 2. That reads 4, 3, 1, 2 — option (a), and it is the only option correct on all four.

(a)A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2
(b)A-4, B-1, C-3, D-2
(c)A-2, B-1, C-3, D-4
(d)A-2, B-3, C-1, D-4

Answer

Why

Correct — A, A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2. Take the four pairings one by one rather than trusting the code. ASEAN keeps its secretariat in Jakarta, where it has been since 1976, so A goes with 4. The Commonwealth of Independent States, formed in December 1991 as the Soviet Union dissolved, placed its executive committee in Minsk, and the founding agreement was signed in Belarus, so B goes with 3. The European Union's Commission and Council sit in Brussels, which is the city the question means by its headquarters, so C goes with 1. OPEC moved its secretariat from Geneva to Vienna in 1965 and has been there since, so D goes with 2. That reads 4, 3, 1, 2 — option (a), and it is the only option correct on all four.

Why the others are wrong

(b)A-4, B-1, C-3, D-2 — It places ASEAN and OPEC correctly but exchanges the other two, sending the CIS to Brussels and the European Union to Minsk. Belarus is not in the European Union at all.
(c)A-2, B-1, C-3, D-4 — This puts ASEAN in Vienna and OPEC in Jakarta, swapping the two most distinctive pairings in the set.
(d)A-2, B-3, C-1, D-4 — It is right about the CIS in Minsk and the European Union in Brussels, but reverses ASEAN and OPEC, which would put the oil producers' secretariat in Jakarta.

Concept

The four bodies belong to four different families. ASEAN is a regional grouping of ten South-East Asian states founded by the Bangkok Declaration of 1967. The CIS is the loose association of former Soviet republics created in December 1991. The European Union is the deepest integration project of the four, with a customs union, a single market and a common currency for most members. OPEC is not regional at all — it is a producers' cartel whose members are spread across three continents.

Two of the pairings can be fixed by geography alone, which is usually enough to settle a four-item match. A body called the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will not be headquartered in Vienna, and that removes options (c) and (d) at once. Between the two that remain, the question is whether Brussels belongs to the European Union or to the CIS, and Brussels is the seat of the Commission and of the Council. The CIS pairing is the one most often missed, so it is worth attaching to a fact: the agreement dissolving the Soviet Union was signed in Belarus in December 1991, and the executive committee stayed there. Note also that the European Union's institutions are not all in one city — the Parliament's official seat is Strasbourg and the Court of Justice sits in Luxembourg — but Brussels is what a headquarters question means.

Key facts

The ASEAN Secretariat has been in Jakarta since 1976; ASEAN itself was founded by the Bangkok Declaration of 1967.
The CIS was created in December 1991 and its executive committee is based in Minsk, Belarus.
The European Commission and the Council of the European Union sit in Brussels; the Parliament's official seat is Strasbourg.
OPEC was founded at Baghdad in 1960 and moved its secretariat from Geneva to Vienna in 1965.
OPEC is a producers' organisation rather than a regional bloc, with members in West Asia, Africa and South America.

Each block and where its secretariat sits

ASEAN→Jakarta, Indonesia — item 4. Secretariat there since 1976.

CIS→Minsk, Belarus — item 3. Executive committee of the association formed in December 1991.

European Union→Brussels, Belgium — item 1. Seat of the Commission and the Council.

OPEC→Vienna, Austria — item 2. Moved there from Geneva in 1965.

Reading 4, 3, 1, 2 down the column gives option (a), the only code correct on all four.

Study next

ASEAN — members, the Bangkok Declaration and India's dialogue partnershipThe dissolution of the Soviet Union and the formation of the CISEuropean Union institutions and the cities they sit inOPEC and OPEC Plus — membership, quotas and their effect on oil pricesHeadquarters of major international organisations, a recurring match-list topic

Common traps

Answering from the code rather than from the pairs. Two options here are right on half the list.
Assuming a single European Union headquarters. Brussels is the working answer, but Strasbourg and Luxembourg host institutions too.
Treating OPEC as a regional bloc because it is listed alongside three regional ones.

As an organisation-to-headquarters match, as which country is not a member of a named body, or through the founding year and founding document.

Related PYQs

UPSC_2008_GS1_Q932008Open & attempt →

Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists: List-I (Organization) A. Amnesty International B. Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) C. Danube Commission D. European Space Agency. List-II (Associated Convention/Person/Place/Headquarters) 1. Viskuli 2. Paris 3. Peter Benenson 4. Belgrade Convention

(a) A B C D 3 1 4 2
(b) A B C D 4 2 3 1
(c) A B C D 3 2 4 1
(d) A B C D 4 1 3 2

Answer(a) A B C D 3 1 4 2

The same match-list format with the CIS again in it. There the association is fixed to Viskuli, the hunting lodge in Belarus where the founding agreement was signed, which is the fact that also explains why its committee sits in Minsk.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
The secretariat of OPEC is located in
- (a)Geneva
- (b)Vienna
- (c)Riyadh
- (d)Baghdad
Answer(b) Vienna — OPEC was founded at Baghdad in 1960 and moved its secretariat from Geneva to Vienna in 1965.
practice — not a real PYQ
The Commonwealth of Independent States has its executive committee headquarters in
- (a)Moscow
- (b)Kyiv
- (c)Minsk
- (d)Almaty
Answer(c) Minsk — in Belarus, where the agreement forming the CIS was signed in December 1991.