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 Chūgoku, Shikoku, and eastern Kyūshū. The Seto Inland Sea provided each of these regions with local transportation and connected each region to the others and far areas, including the coastal area of the Sea of Japan, Korea, and China. After Kobe port was founded in 1868 to serve foreign ships, the Seto Inland Sea became a major international waterway with connection to the Pacific. Due to the development of land transportation, the travel between east and west — that is, transportation within Shikoku, within Honshū, and between Honshū and Kyūshū — shifted to railroad and road transport. Two coastal railways,