On February 14, 1950, the Soviet Union transferred control of the Chinese Eastern Railway (CER), Port Arthur, and the city of Dalian to China. In addition, Chinese partners were granted a loan of 300 million dollars at 1% annual interest.

The Chinese Eastern Railway, known as the Manchurian Railway until 1917, as the Chinese Changchun Railway from August 1945, and as the Harbin Railway from 1953, was a railway line that ran through Manchuria, connecting Chita with Vladivostok and Port Arthur. Built between 1897 and 1903, it served as the southern branch of the Trans-Siberian Railway and was owned by the Russian Empire, which operated it with its subjects. The construction of the railway was part of Russia's strategy to increase its influence in the Far East and strengthen its military presence on the shores of the Yellow Sea, occurring against the backdrop of Japanese expansion in Korea and China. These plans, including the intention to seize Inner Manchuria, became one of the reasons for the war with Japan, the defeat in which made them unfeasible.

Port Arthur, a former port city and naval base on the Yellow Sea, was located at the southeastern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, in the Kwantung area. The site of this city is now the Liushunkou District of Dalian in the People's Republic of China.

The Memorial Church in honor of Archangel Michael, also known as the Michael-Archangel Church, was an Orthodox church in Dalian, referred to as Dalniy by Russian emigrants. It was located in the Qingyun Cemetery and was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution without compensation.