Cryptic crossword clue
Early on, bus is breaking down in a foreign country 12

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 12 letter word BYELORUSSIAN

I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
B
Y
E
L
O
R
U
S
S
I
A
N

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "in a foreign country" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case in a foreign country = byelorussian.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

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