World Events in 2023 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sudan

In 1958, Sudan implemented laws to sanction trade and business relationships with Israeli citizens and companies. Imports of Israeli products were not allowed.

In October 2020, both countries announced that they would establish diplomatic relations. The trade sanction was lifted on April 20, 2021. The establishment of official diplomatic relations was signed in February 2, 2023.

In the same month on the 23rd, Oman opened its airspace to Israeli airlines for the first time to improve their bilateral relations.

Answer: Agreement to trade with India using their own currencies

At the Chinese presidential election held with the National People's Congress, Xi was elected as president to an unprecedented third term.

China helped to mediate the diplomatic relationship of Saudi Arabia and Iran, which was severed in 2016.

Honduras severed its diplomatic relationship with Taiwan and recognized the One China principle, which is officially held by the Chinese government.

Brazil and China signed an agreement to trade in their own currencies, ceasing the use of US dollars as an intermediary.

Answer: Finland

On April 4th, Finland became the 31st member of NATO after the Finnish foreign minister handed the accession document to the US secretary of state. The inclusion of Finland increased NATO security alliance, doubling the length of the members' states which bordered Russia.

Answer: Japan

The 49th G7 summit was held in Hiroshima from 19 to 23 May. The two main issues discussed were the invasion of Ukraine and the growing influence of China.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was invited as a guest to attend the summit to discuss the 15-month invasion of Ukraine by Russia, to bolster international support. U.S. President Joe Biden announced his support for training Ukrainian pilots in F-016 fighter jets, and eventually transferred those aircraft to Ukraine.

The members of the G7 also discussed a unified plan against the growing Chinese influence, to deter a possible invasion of Taiwan.

Australia, India, Comoros, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia, Vietnam and South Korea were invited to attend the summit.

Answer: New York

New York recorded the worst air pollution in the world on June 7th reaching an AQI of 342. The wildfire smoke from Canada drifted over creating orange haze in the city. The Federal Aircraft Administration halted some flights bound for New York's LaGuardia Airport due to the smoke. Visibility was also causing delays at Newark Liberty International Airport.

Answer: Chinese yuan

Trade sanctions were imposed by the West against Russia to punish the Russians over their invasion of Ukraine. Indian refiners started to pay the oil exporters from Russia with Chinese yuan. India emerged as the largest buyer of seaborne Russian crude oil.

Answer: Spain

The 9th edition of the tournament was jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand from July 20th to August 20th. Spain defeated England 1-0 in the final to win their first world's title. Sweden beat Australia to finish third.

32 teams qualified for the tournament. Brazil was eliminated in the group stage. U.S.A was eliminated by Sweden in the round of 16 by penalty kicks (5-4), with the match scoreless after extra-time.

Answer: Azerbaijan and Armenia

Most of the region (4400 sq km) is under the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, governed by ethnic Armenians, but the region is internationally a part of Azerbaijan.

About 120,000 ethnic Armenians who are Christians form the majority of the population living in this region. Historically, the people in this region (then part of the province of Artsakh) were confirmed by ancient Greek and Roman sources "long before our era" to be Armenian.

The Azerbaijanis are mostly Turkic Muslims with deep historical ties with this region for many centuries. For more than a century, there were many bloody conflicts between the two peoples.

Before the conflict in 2023, there were two major conflicts fought over the region: the first war from 1988 to 1994 and the second conflict in 2020 from September 27th to November 10th.

The 1994 Bishkek Protocol ended the first war, in which the Armenians made considerable territorial gains in addition to this region and also surrounding Azerbaijan districts.

On September 19th, Azerbaijan launched a military offensive against the Republic of Artsakh backed by the Armenians. Azerbaijan claimed a swift victory and the local government was dissolved. More than 100,000 Armenians fled the region.

Answer: Gaza Strip

On October 7th, Hamas gunmen launched a surprise attack on southern Israel when they crossed from Gaza. The militants killed about 1200 people and took more than 240 hostages.

The Hamas military commander, Mohammad Deif, made an announcement on Hamas media on the attack and urged the Palestinians to fight.

The Israeli Security Cabinet formally declared war for the first time since the Yom Kipper War in 1973. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel is "at war". Israel carried out retaliatory air strikes against Hamas in Gaza. More than 1 million Israelis in Gaza City were advised to evacuate and move south.

Answer: San Francisco

The APEC Summit was held from 14 to 17 in November at San Francisco. The city was selected due to its historical ties with Asia. Both superpowers agreed to re-open suspended channels of military communications. Climate change was also another important issue. Both countries agreed to co-operate due to the rising global temperature, which had reached a critical level in 2023.