The station became quite important in 1945, as one of the bases of the Soviet invasion of Manchuria, which also saw the rail line on the Chinese side temporary re-converted to Russian gauge.

Major General Kiichiro Higuchi, who was consulted by Abraham Kaufman, the head of the Far Eastern Jewish Association, saw the situation and together with his subordinates arranged for food, clothing, fuel to survive the cold, medical care, and a route to Shanghai for the Jews.

The other two are in Primorsky Krai, much farther to the east; besides, much traffic between Russia and China travels on the rail line crossing Mongolia.

It is served by what is now officially called the Southern Branch of the Transbaykal Railway (Южный ход Забайкальской железной дороги): a line that branches off the present-day main Trans-Siberian Railway line at Karymskaya junction (east of Chita), and continues southeast toward the Chinese border.

Originally (until 1916), this line was part of the main Moscow-to-Vladivostok rail route, where trains coming from the west would continue into China on the former Chinese Eastern Railway, in order to cut across Manchuria on their way to Russian Vladivostok.

After the modern route of the Trans-Siberian Railway, located entirely within Russian national territory, was completed in 1916, the Southern Branch's role was restricted to that of servicing Russia's border communities, and providing connectivity to China.