What is the third component of Traditional Security?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Balance of Power
Option (1) To surrender — Incorrect. Surrender is one of a government’s three basic choices when war threatens, but governments do not advertise it as the policy of the country, so it is not a component of security policy.
Option (2) To Prevent — Incorrect. Preventing war by promising to raise its costs to an unacceptable level is deterrence, the first component of traditional security policy.
Option (3) To Defend — Incorrect. Limiting or ending a war that has broken out is defence, the second component.
Option (4) Balance of Power — Correct. Traditional security policy has a third component called balance of power. Governments watch which countries are bigger and stronger, as a clue to future threats, and work to maintain a favourable balance of power, mainly by building up their own military power.
NCERT (2026-27): “Traditional Notions: External … In responding to the threat of war, a government has three basic choices: to surrender; to prevent the other side from attacking by promising to raise the costs of war to an unacceptable level; and to defend itself when war actually … breaks out so as to deny the attacking country its objectives and to turn back or defeat the attacking forces altogether. Governments may choose to surrender when actually confronted by war, but they will not advertise this as the policy of the country. Therefore, security policy is concerned with preventing war, which is called deterrence, and with limiting or ending war, which is called defence.… Traditional Notions: External … Traditional security policy has a third component called balance of power. When countries look around them, they see that some countries are bigger and stronger. This is a clue to who might be a threat in the future.…” |