UPSC Prelims 2015 · Question 77 of 98
UPSC Prelims 2015 question on Mediterranean Coastline Countries
- ExamUPSC CSE
- Year2015
- PaperGeneral Studies Paper I
- SubjectGeography
- TopicIndian Map-Based Geography
- DifficultyMedium
- TypeDirect
Which one of the following countries does not open out to the Mediterranean Sea?
Show answer
Answer: B. Jordan
Verdict
The answer is Jordan. Syria, Lebanon and Israel all have Mediterranean coastlines; Jordan does not.
Analysis
Moving down the eastern Mediterranean shore, Syria, Lebanon and Israel each front the sea directly. Jordan lies inland behind them, and its only maritime access is a short stretch on the Gulf of Aqaba at Aqaba, which opens into the Red Sea rather than the Mediterranean. This is why Jordan's trade routes and its historical relationship with the sea differ sharply from those of its neighbours.
Source
Any standard atlas.
How to crack it
For does not open out questions, work along the coast in order rather than testing countries at random, because a coastline is a sequence and the odd one out is the country missing from it. Running the eastern Mediterranean from north to south gives Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, then Egypt, and Jordan never appears. Keep West Asian coastal access as a mental map, since the region's conflicts and refugee movements keep it in the news.