Editing Operation Barbarossa (section)

=== Subsequent German offensives ===
Despite the rapid relocation of Red Army armaments production east of the Urals and a dramatic increase of production in 1942, especially of armour, new aircraft types and artillery, the ''[[German Army (1935–1945)|Heer]]'' (German army) was able to mount another large-scale offensive in June 1942, although on a much reduced front than the previous summer. Hitler, having realised that Germany's oil supply was severely depleted,{{sfn|Hayward|2000|p=769}} attempted to utilise Army Group South to capture the [[Petroleum industry in Azerbaijan|oil fields of Baku]] in the new offensive, codenamed [[Case Blue]].{{sfn|Symonds|2014|p=70}} Again, the Germans quickly overran great expanses of Soviet territory, but they failed to achieve their ultimate goal of the [[oil field]]s of [[Baku]], culminating in their disastrous defeat at the [[Battle of Stalingrad]] in February 1943 and withdrawal from the Caucasus.{{sfn|Baker|2009|pp=57–68}}

By 1943, Soviet armaments production was fully operational and increasingly outproducing the German war economy.{{sfn|Dunn|1995|pp=44–45}} The final major German offensive in the Eastern theatre of World War II took place during July–August 1943 with the launch of [[Operation Citadel]], an assault on the [[Kursk]] [[Salient (military)|salient]].{{sfn|Baudot|Bernard|Foot|Jacobsen|1989|p=483}} Approximately one million German troops confronted a Soviet force over 2.5&nbsp;million strong. The Soviets, well aware of the attack in advance and fully prepared for it, prevailed in the [[Battle of Kursk]]. Following the German defeat, the Soviets launched [[Operation Kutuzov]], a counter-offensive employing six million men along a {{convert|1500|mi|order=flip|adj=on}} front towards the Dnieper River as they drove the Germans westwards.{{sfn|Glantz|2002|pp=36–41}}

Employing increasingly ambitious and tactically sophisticated offensives, along with making operational improvements in secrecy and deception, by the summer of 1944, the Red Army was eventually able to regain much of the area previously conquered by the Germans.{{sfn|Shepherd|2016|pp=444–450, 463–467}} The destruction of Army Group Centre, the outcome of [[Operation Bagration]] in 1944, proved to be a decisive success and additional Soviet offensives against the German Army Groups North and South in the autumn of 1944 put the German war machine into further retreat.{{sfn|Baker|2009|pp=87–97}} By January 1945, what had been the Eastern Front was now controlled by the Soviets, whose military might was aimed at the German capital of Berlin.{{sfn|Baker|2009|p=98}} Hitler [[Death of Adolf Hitler|committed suicide]] on 30 April 1945 in order to avoid capture by the Soviets, and the war in Europe finally ended with the total defeat and capitulation of Nazi Germany in May 1945.{{sfn|Burleigh|2000|pp=794–812}}