Aral Sea fate. Since the disappearance of the Southeast Aral in 2008, Vozrozhdeniya effectively no longer exists as a distinct geographical feature. The area is now shared by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. In 1948, a top-secret Soviet bioweapons laboratory was established on the island, in the centre of the Aral Sea which is now disputed territory between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The exact history, functions and current status of this facility are still unclear, but bio-agents tested there included "Bacillus anthracis", "Coxiella burnetii", "Francisella tularensis", "Brucella suis", "Rickettsia prowazekii", "Variola major" (smallpox), "Yersinia pestis", botulinum toxin, and Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. In 1971, weaponized
Seto Inland Sea for two purposes: first, international or domestic cargo transportation, and second, local transportation between coastal areas and islands on the sea. Major ports are Kobe, Okayama, Takamatsu, Tokushima, Matsuyama, and Hiroshima. Honshū and Shikoku have been connected by three series of bridges since the late 1980s. Those series of bridges, collectively known as the Honshū–Shikoku Bridge Project, are, from east to west, Akashi Kaikyō Bridge, Great Seto Bridge, and Nishiseto Expressway. On the other hand, no bridge over the Seto Inland Sea connects Kyūshū and another island. Historically, the Seto Inland Sea as transport line served four coastal areas: Kansai,