 Nyora kupfuurira kweiyi ndima - Muna 1942, Khrushchev akanga ari paSouthwest Front, uye iye naTimoshenko vakakarakadza kupokana kukuru munharaunda yeKharkov. Stalin akabvumira rutivi bedzi rwechirongwa chacho, asi varwi veRed Army 640.000 vaizobatanidzwa muchirwisa. Zvisinei, vaGermany vakanga vafunga kuti vaSoviet vaigona kurwisa paKharkov, ndokuisa musungo. Kutanga pana 12 May 1942, kurwisa kweSoviet pakutanga kwakaratidzika kuva kwakabudirira, asi mukati memazuva mashanu vaGermany vakanga vapinda zvakadzika mumativi eSoviet, uye mauto eRed Army akanga ari mungozi yokugurwa. Stalin akaramba kumisa kurwisa, uye mapoka eRed Army akakurumidza kukombwa navaGermany. USSR yakarasikirwa navarwi vanenge 267 000, kubatanidza varume vanopfuura 200 000 vakatapwa, uye Stalin akaderedza nzvimbo yaTimoshenko ndokudzorera Khrushchev kuMoscow. Kunyange zvazvo Stalin akataura kuti aizosunga uye aizouraya Khrushchev, akabvumira komisar kuti adzokere kunorwa nokumutumira kuStalingrad. 