President Joe Biden commemorated the 80th anniversary of D-Day by saluting the valor of American World War II troops who stormed the beaches of Normandy, France, alongside US allies, while linking Allied efforts against Nazi Germany to their front against Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.
“We understand the evil forces that these soldiers fought against 80 years ago. “They never fade,” Biden remarked during his remarks Thursday at the Normandy American Cemetery. “Aggression and avarice, the desire to dominate and control, and the use of force to shift borders—these are perpetual.” The struggle between dictatorship and freedom is never-ending.”
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The president described Russia’s Vladimir Putin as a “tyrant bent on domination” and praised the Ukrainian military for “never backing down.”
The world’s autocrats are closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine and whether we allow this illegal invasion to continue unchecked. We cannot let that happen,” Biden stated. “Surrendering to bullies and bowing down to dictators is simply unacceptable. If we did that, we would forget what happened here on these sacred beaches. Make no mistake; we will not surrender. We won’t forget.
Without naming presidential competitor Donald Trump, Biden warned of the dangers of isolationism, a veiled reference to Trump’s “America First” foreign policy approach.
“Isolationism was not the answer 80 years ago and is not the answer today,” Biden stated. “Real alliances make us stronger, a lesson that I pray we Americans never forget,” the president said, referring to the post-World War II North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which he termed “the greatest military alliance in the world.”
At the end of the event, Biden became emotional at moments, especially as fighter jets flew overhead in a “missing man” configuration, grimacing and touching his heart before pumping his fist.
The events in Normandy on Thursday were gloomy, taking place among over 9,000 American veterans’ tombstones. Before his remarks, the president met with more than two dozen veterans and presented them with specially created challenge coins picturing troops approaching Normandy’s beaches with a B-17 flying overhead, according to the White House.
The president and first wife, Jill Biden, welcomed the veterans individually, taking photos with them and praising them for their service.
“It’s my honor,” Biden said to one of them.
This D-Day anniversary is significant because many WWII veterans, who are on average 100 years old, may not be able to attend in five years. (Biden led the singing of “Happy Birthday” for one veteran who stated that their birthday is on Saturday.)
At the ceremony, French President Emmanuel Macron bestowed France’s Legion of Honor on 11 American veterans.
“You came here to join arms with our own warriors and make France a free nation. And you’re back home today, if I may say so,” Macron told the veterans.
In the afternoon, the Bidens laid a wreath at the grave of Pfc. John S. Greenfield, who lived in the president’s hometown of Wilmington, Delaware.
“We’re not far from the point when the last remaining voices, those who fought and died on D-Day, will no longer be with us.” So, we have a special obligation,” Biden stated previously. “We can’t let the silence of the coming years obscure what transpired here.” We must remember this. We must honor it and live it. We must remember that just because they were heroes that day, it does not absolve us of our responsibilities today.
“Democracy is never guaranteed,” the president emphasized.
