Third Battle of Kharkov
From July 1941 to March 1943 Kraiss was given command of the 168th Infantry Division and participated in Operation Barbarossa. For his leadership of the division during the Third Battle of Kharkov, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. On October 1, 1942, he received his final promotion to the rank of lieutenant general. In April 1943 Kraiss took over the newly established 355th Infantry Division, which sustained heavy losses during action against the Red Army at Merefa and was subsequently disbanded on 9 November 1943.