[6] Batov was selected to "volunteer" for service in the Spanish Civil War, under the nom de guerre Fritz Pablo.

He first served as military adviser to the Hungarian communist Máté Zalka, who commanded the XII International Brigade defending the approaches to Madrid.

The corps later transferred to the Finnish front, and fought in the second phase (February – March 1940) of the Russian-Finnish War in the Karelian sector under 13th Army.

For his services in Finland, Batov was awarded a second Order of Lenin, promoted to divisional commander (Komdiv) and, in June, to lieutenant general.

This corps was the only major Red Army formation in the Crimea at the outbreak of Operation Barbarossa, and Batov had arrived at its headquarters in Simferopol just two days earlier.

Rokossovski noted that Batov preferred active command to "sit[ing] in the headquarters", and that his current role was "a burden" to him.

He helped to plan the Soviet counteroffensive, Operation Uranus, providing key intelligence to Gen. Zhukov regarding the boundaries between German and Romanian forces.

In July 1943, Batov's army formed part of Rokossovski's Front during the giant Battle of Kursk, on a secondary sector, and in the exploitation operations that followed the German defeat.

In a well-known confrontation at the planning stage, Rokossovski convinced Stalin that, given the terrain, it was better to strike two strong blows against the German forces than just one.

[16] He was counting on Batov's ability to lead his army across swampy regions south of Bobruisk, using corduroy roads, swamp shoes, and other means.

Operation Bagration had run out of steam, but Batov's army held off strong German counterattacks against the Narev bridgehead for more than two months.

Rokossovski later noted: I had been with 65th Army since Stalingrad and had had ample opportunity to observe the splendid combat qualities of its men, commanders, and, of course, Pavel Batov, a brave and talented soldier.

In 1949, he became First Deputy Commander of the Group of Soviet Forces, Germany, for a brief period before attending the Voroshilov General Staff Academy.

[23] He remained a close personal friend of Rokossovski until the latter's death in 1968, and was entrusted with the task of editing and publishing his former commander's memoirs.

A post-war Western intelligence assessment summed him up as follows: During World War II, Batov enjoyed much confidence and great respect from the troops because he was one of the few senior officers who went to the front lines during battles and conversed with the soldiers.