In the structure of the foreign publications collection of the traditional format stored in SPSTL SB RAS, journals have always been the predominant type – more than 80 %, therefore, since the 70s of the last century, the Depository Department (at present – the Book Storage Department) has permanently participated in studies to correct principles of its formation and organization. Since the early 1990s, acquisitions to this segment of the collection began to decline sharply, interdepartmental cooperation and coordination of libraries in the system of depository storage of library collections fell to the ground. The bulk of journals migrated into the electronic environment, interpreted as an undoubted achievement. However, in the conditions of modern sanctions politics on the part of Western countries the situation has cardinally changed. Large-scale foreign providers have left and continue to leave the Russian information space. As a result, on the one hand, gaps have formed in the collection, which are impossible to fill, as well as to maintain the completeness of the repertoire. On the other hand, the value of many publications accumulated becomes more and more doubtful due to the total and complete obsolescence of information they contain and absence of any historical and cultural value. The purpose of the article is to give the notion about the evolution of approaches to the formation and organization of this collection basing on the results of undertaken researches. When working with the initial material the authors used methods of observation (for to collect data), statistical analysis (data registration, processing and systematization, etc.), comparative and system analysis, as well as that of document sources analysis, including certificates and reports on scientific-research themes.