The paper analyzes archival materials to investigate some issues of Russian territorial expansion in the Middle East before the outbreak of World War I. The article underlines the significance of Manchuria and the Chinese Eastern railway for Russian economic development. The article maintains that the goods turnover between the two countries depended greatly on the political situation and the position taken by the officials of the countries. The article analyzes letters of the Priamur Governor-General N.L. Gondatti written in 1912 and addressed to the Committee on the Expansion of the Middle East and the Minister of Finance V.N. Kokovtsev, who was the then head of the government. One of the most important geopolitical issues related both to Russia's expansion in the Middle East and to the national security of the country was the introduction of a state tax on bread imported from Manchuria. The discussion of the problem despite its urgency was delayed because of the lack of cooperation between federal and local authorities.