The 53rd Army was reformed on May 1, 1942 from divisions of the 34th Army with the mission of fighting on the Northwestern Front. Until March 1943 it fought the German 16th Army in the Demyansk Offensive and unsuccessfully attempted to cut the Ramushevo corridor. After the German breakout the 53rd Army was transferred to the Stavka reserve on March 22 and then to the Reserve Front on April 10. On April 15, it was transferred a third time, to the Steppe Front, where it received new units and fought in the Battle of Kursk. On July 16 its troops took defensive positions on a line from Podolhi to Poidjarug. It fought subsequently in the Battle of Belgorod, pushing back German troops from July 19 onwards.