Whakaotihia te rerenga e whai ake nei: I te tau 1939, i whakamahere a Vatutin i nga mahi mo te whakaekenga a te Soviet ki a Poland me Tiamana, a ko ia te Tumuaki o nga Kaimahi o te Roopu o te Roopu Whero. I te tau 1940, i raro i te mana o Georgy Zhukov, ko tēnei rōpū
i hopu i a Bessarabia i a Romania. Hei utu mo enei kaupapa kore-whakataetae, i whakatairangahia e Stalin a Vatutin ki te taumata o te Lieutenant General me te whakatu i a ia ki te tuunga nui o te Tumuaki o te Tari Whakahaere o te General Staff. Heoi, kaore a Vatutin i rite ki tana whakatuunga hou: ahakoa he auaha, he pukumahi hoki, kaore ia i whai wheako whawhai, ana ko tana mohio ki te toi whakahaere me te rautaki he tino tuuturu. Heoi, ko ona pakiaka o te kaiahuwhenua, ko te pakeke o te taiohi, me te ngakau nui o te roopu i waiho ai ia hei tetahi o nga mea iti a Stalin i roto i te ope Soviet. Ko Vatutin, me te toenga o te rangatira o te ope Whero, kaore i rite te ope ki te whakaeke a Tiamana i te 22 o Pipiri 1941.