The Bering Strait contains the maritime boundary between Russia's Big Diomede and the United States' Little Diomede.
The Diomede Islands sit in the middle of the Bering Strait, between Russia's Chukchi Peninsula and Alaska's Seward Peninsula. Big Diomede belongs to Russia, while Little Diomede belongs to the United States. The islands are only about 4 kilometers apart, although the international date line passes between them, giving rise to the nicknames “Tomorrow Island” and “Yesterday Isle.”
The modern U.S.–Russia maritime boundary runs through the strait along approximately 168°58′37″ west longitude. It separates the two islands' territorial waters and continues north into the Chukchi Sea. The boundary's political significance became especially clear during the Cold War, when the nearby islands were described as an “Ice Curtain.”
The Bering Strait is named for Danish-born Russian explorer Vitus Bering. Cook, Torres, and Davis straits are elsewhere in the world and are not associated with the Diomede border.