Unlike Vladivostok, the city has never been closed to foreigners, despite it being the headquarters of the Far East Military District, and retains its historically international flavor. Once the capital of the Soviet Far East (from 1926 to 1938), since the demise of the Soviet Union, it has experienced an increased Asian presence. It is estimated that over one million Chinese travel to and through Khabarovsk yearly, and foreign investment by Japanese and Korean corporations have grown in recent years. The city has a multi-story shopping mall and about a dozen hotels.