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Japan-Russia
Peace Talks End Over Sanctions
Russia has walked away from peace treaty negotiations with Japan and frozen joint economic projects related to the Kuril Islands, prompting condemnation from the administration of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. The withdrawal followed Japan’s recent escalation of tougher sanctions on Russian banks and individuals, which have been imposed as a response to the invasion of Ukraine. The volcanic archipelago, known in Japan as the Northern Territories and in Russia as the Kurils, stretches from Hokkaido in Japan to the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, and separates the Sea of Okhotsk from the north Pacific Ocean. The two countries have never formally ended World War II-era hostilities over the island chain, which the Soviet Union seized in 1945.
This map depicts the island chain fueling in an ongoing dispute between Russia and Japan. Click on the map to learn more.
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Saudi Arabia
Yemen Rebels Attack Oil Sites
Houthi rebels launched drone and missile strikes on Saudi Arabian energy facilities in Jiddah, southeast of the Kingdom, temporarily reducing oil processing rates and production. The same Saudi storage tanker at the North Jiddah Bulk Plant was attacked by Iranian-backed Houthis in 2020. No casualties were reported by the Saudi-led military coalition fighting in Yemen, though homes and vehicles were damaged. The most recent barrage represents an escalation of rebel attacks in Saudi Arabia as the Yemeni civil war continues for an eighth year and peace talks deteriorate. The site is southeast of the city’s international airport, a crucial hub for Muslim pilgrims traveling to Mecca.
This map depicts sites of Saudi energy facilities attacked by Houthi rebels. Click on the map to learn more.
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World
Water Day Focus on Groundwater
International organizations are taking advantage of World Water Day today to draw attention to the importance of groundwater throughout the world. The World Health Organization notes that groundwater, the largest reserve of fresh water on the Earth, provides half the world’s household water, one-quarter for agricultural irrigation, and one-third used in industrial applications. The two primary threats to groundwater supplies are contamination from industrial and agricultural pollution, and depletion from overuse. Additionally, changing weather patterns mean rain patterns in some regions are changing to shorter, heavier bursts in which more of the area’s annual rainfall is lost to runoff and can’t be absorbed into underground water stores as easily as rain that falls more consistently.
This map from the U.S. Department of State Humanitarian Information Unit depicts aquifers across the world in danger of depletion or contamination. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Which city, Canada’s youngest, was incorporated into the country following the transcontinental railroad reaching the region, then destroyed in a fire two months later and eventually rebuilt?
A: Vancouver, Canada
The Great Vancouver Fire in June of 1886 razed the new city to the ground within 45 minutes, leaving an estimated 28 dead and only three buildings untouched. The Canadian Pacific Railway was granted a 6,000 acre extension one year prior the Great Fire. In order to clear way for the railroad tracks, workers and loggers cleared forests of trees, and highly flammable scraps of wood accumulated in large mounds and were burned to create clearings. Historians believe a clearing fire was swept west thanks to a gust of wind and landed on other piles of scrapped wood, sparking dozens of fires that destroyed the brand new city. Rebuilding began just hours later, with community members coming together to re-erect the city of Vancouver.
Source
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Q: In which famous lake in the South Pacific can you swim with millions of migrating golden jellyfish and not get stung?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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