Explanation
- A
An Israeli radar system
(a) An Israeli radar system. Israel’s Arrow and Iron Dome are different. THAAD is American. This is not the key.
- B
India's indigenous anti-missile programme
(b) India's indigenous anti-missile programme. That is the BMD / Prithvi Defence Vehicle effort, not THAAD. This is not the key.
- C
An American anti-missile system
(c) An American anti-missile system. (c) Official key: Terminal High Altitude Area Defense is a US Army hit-to-kill system against ballistic missiles in their terminal phase. Deployments in South Korea made news. That is the stored key.
- D
A defence collaboration between Japan and South Korea
(d) A defence collaboration between Japan and South Korea. THAAD is a US system; Japan and South Korea may host or discuss it, but it is not a Japan–Korea joint product. This is not the key.
Summary. Official key is (c). THAAD is a United States terminal-phase anti-ballistic missile system. It is not Israeli radar, not India’s BMD, and not a Japan–South Korea collaboration. Honour the stored letter (c).
Same topic · past papers
UPSC has asked this before
These previous-year questions sit on the same topic. Open one to practise the earlier ask.