Quiz
A lot happened in 2021. Test your foreign-policy knowledge with our year-end news quiz.
Local residents are tested for COVID-19 at a free testing site at Farragut Square as coronavirus cases surge in Washington on Dec. 21. Alex Wong/Getty Images
What in the world happened this year? Test your memory with our 2021 recap news quiz!
Have feedback? Email whatintheworld@foreignpolicy.com to let me know your thoughts.
What in the world happened this year? Test your memory with our 2021 recap news quiz!
1. Persian Gulf leaders kicked off 2021 by lifting a blockade on which country?
Saudi Arabia
Qatar
Kuwait
Iraq
2. A Feb. 1 coup in Myanmar resulted in the arrest and trial of which leader?
Min Aung Hlaing
Myint Swe
Kyaw Moe Tun
Aung San Suu Kyi
3. Russians protested early this year after the opposition leader Alexei Navalny was sentenced to several years in prison. What chemical agent was used to poison Navalny the year before?
Novichok
Polonium
Arsenic
Sarin
4. Former U.S. President Donald Trump was acquitted in his second impeachment trial in February. How many Republican senators joined Democrats in voting to convict him?
0
2
7
13
5. What is the name of the container ship that was stuck in the Suez Canal for a week in March?
Ever Given
Ever Gentle
Ever Golden
Ever Genius
6. Much of the world was vaccinated against COVID-19 this year. Which manufacturer’s vaccine was the first to receive emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration?
Moderna
Pfizer/BioNTech
AstraZeneca
Johnson & Johnson
7. A new European soccer league was announced in April but then quickly abandoned after stoking mass outrage among fans. What was the now-defunct group’s name?
The Super League
The Mega League
The Ultra League
The Jumbo League
8. Violence broke out between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza in May. How long did the fighting last?
2 months
4 days
3 weeks
11 days
9. Performers from which nation won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest?
Spain
Iceland
Cyprus
Italy
10. In a vote marred by fraud, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad won reelection in May with what percent of the vote?
59 percent
74 percent
88 percent
95 percent
11. In June, Pedro Castillo was elected president of what Latin American country?
Peru
Honduras
Chile
Cuba
12. Protests exploded across South Africa in July after the imprisonment of which former president on corruption charges?
Cyril Ramaphosa
Kgalema Motlanthe
Thabo Mbeki
Jacob Zuma
13. Which of the following was not a new Olympic sport introduced at this year’s Tokyo Games?
Skateboarding
Judo
Sport climbing
Karate
FP’s Allison Meakem looks back at our coverage of the Tokyo Olympics.
14. Anti-government protests that swept Cuba in July are thought to have originated in what town near Havana?
Bejucal
San Antonio de los Baños
Playa Baracoa
Santa Cruz del Norte
15. It only took 10 days for the Taliban to take control of Afghanistan in August as the U.S. military withdrew from the country. Which was the first provincial capital to fall to the group?
Zaranj
Bamiyan
Ghazni
Jalalabad
16. Which German politician succeeded longtime leader Angela Merkel as chancellor in December?
Olaf Scholz
Armin Laschet
Annalena Baerbock
Christian Lindner
17. Which British Commonwealth country became an independent republic in 2021?
Fiji
Mauritius
Guyana
Barbados
18. This year’s Pandora Papers leak detailed how the wealthy and powerful hide their money around the world. Which of the following pop stars was among those implicated?
Rihanna
Madonna
Cher
Shakira
19. As talks over the Iran nuclear deal dragged on this year, who took over as Tehran’s chief negotiator?
Mohammad Mokhber
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
Ali Bagheri
Ebrahim Raisi
20. Which of the following was not a real diplomatic spat that happened in 2021?
Croatia and Italy quibbled over dessert wine.
Chilean and Argentine envoys fought over empanadas.
A Belgian farmer violated a centuries-old treaty with France.
North and South Korea took offense at a Japanese curry dish.
For more details on these high-drama squabbles, check out this roundup of weird diplomatic slights from FP’s Colm Quinn.
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Nina Goldman is a deputy copy editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @goldmannk
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