Deep divisions have also appeared along its shores, often resolved by force of arms, which have led to a painful political separation, a widening gap between its peoples and development divorced from, if not opposed to, what was previously the centre of the world.
Au mai apărut şi diviziuni profunde de-a lungul ţărmului acesteia, adesea soluţionate prin forţa armelor, care au dus la o separare politică dureroasă, la o ruptură tot mai mare între popoarele sale, iar dezvoltarea s-a despărţit dacă nu chiar s-a opus la ceea ce a fost cândva centrul lumii.