Germany started the invasion of the USSR in June 1941, and Kharkov was a primary target. In a short while, all of the critical operations in Kharkov were ordered to evacuate into the Far East. For this, the UPTI was split, most going to Alma-Ata in Kazakhstan, and the LEMO to Bukhar in Uzbekistan, separated by 1,500 km; thus the war accomplished what the scientists had earlier failed to do. The evacuation started in October 1941, but it was well into 1942 before facilities in Bukhara were in operation.