 This changed from 1860 onwards, as Russia by the Treaty of Peking acquired from China a long strip of Pacific coastline south of the mouth of the Amur River and began to build the naval base of Vladivostok.As Vladivostok was not an year-round ice-free port, Russia still wanted a more southern port.In 1861, Russia attempted to seize the island of Tsushima from Japan and to establish an anchorage, but failed largely due to political pressure from Great Britain and other western powers.