The response of Vladivostok entrepreneurs to Russian policy in the Far East in the late 19th - early 20th centuries

The paper examines the impact of the foreign policy of the Russian Empire on the economic development of the Russian Far East. The focus is on the response of Vladivostok entrepreneurs to the decision of the Russian authorities to build a part of the Trans-Siberian Railway through the territory of China and connect it with the ports of the Yellow Sea. These actions of the Russian authorities led to the fact that Vladivostok started to lose its significance. A substantive part of the capital was redirected to Northeast China. Entrepreneurs tried to transfer their business from the Russian Far East to Manchuria as well. Business communities were anxious about the Russian authorities’ activities. They requested the Russian government to give consideration to the situation in Vladivostok. However, the Russian authorities ignored their appeals. The Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 showed how short-sighted the Far Eastern policy of the Russian government really was. Nevertheless, defeat in this war and its tragic consequences forced the Russian authorities to reconsider their policy and focus on the development of the Russian Far East.