The Early Phase of the Great Patriotic War on the Territory of Belarus The monograph by Ivan Basyuk gives an insight into the early days of the war between the Soviet Union and its former ally, Nazi Germany. Researchers were not free in choosing their subjects in the Soviet Union. The early World War II period was the responsibility of Russian historians who did not dig deep for obvious reasons. The monograph author studies the causes and progress of combat operations at the eastern border of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR), and Soviet troops' failures in Western Belarus. The researcher dwells on preparations for military operations in Western Belarus, plans to reinforce defenses on the BSSR's western border, maneuvers by Western Front forces and the Navahrudak Cauldron. The monograph is the first systematic and comprehensive research by Belarusian historians into the subject. The focal point is the Navahrudak Cauldron, in which Red Army soldiers were surrounded by German troops.