Europe celebrates the 80th anniversary of D-Day with the presence of Zelensky and the veto of Putin | The Basque Journal

French President Emmanuel Macron this Wednesday kicked off three days of commemorations on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy Landings. This week the Allies pay tribute to the veterans and those killed in combat who participated in the great military operation of June 6, 1944, better known as D-Day, which culminated in the liberation of Europe from the Nazi yoke. Russia (heir to the USSR), one of the great winners of the war and the country that suffered the most human losses during World War II, will not be present at the international ceremony that will take place this Thursday at ‘Omaha Beach’ in the town. French Saint Laurent sur Mer. Its president, Vladimir Putin, has not been invited due to “the aggression” against Ukraine. On the other hand, the leader of kyiv, Volodymyr Zelensky, will be there. Eight decades later, a war is once again present on European soil.

Under strong security measures, twenty-five heads of State and Government will go to the beaches of Normandy. Among them, the president of the United States, Joe Biden; his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella; and the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, among other guests. King Charles III of England will take part in the morning event at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, but not in the international ceremony. The monarch, who suffers from cancer, has handed over the baton to his son, Prince William of Wales, for this great occasion.

Macron began his marathon of D-Day commemorations this Wednesday in Plumelec (Brittany), where he paid tribute to the Breton resisters and the paratroopers of the Free French Special Air Service (SAS). On the night of June 5 to 6, 1944, twenty members of this battalion landed “in the middle of the enemy device to help the resistant, determined and brave Bretons,” explained the head of state in a speech.

He also remembered Émile Bouétard, the first French soldier killed on D-Day. This young sailor did not hesitate to leave his homeland to join General Charles de Gaulle in England. «He wanted to be one of the first to set foot on the soil of the country when the hour of liberation rang. “He fulfilled his promise by sacrificing his life,” Macron summarized.

“An indelible mark”

“He was one of my friends,” explained Colonel Achille Muller, 99. This World War II veteran, who was 19 years old during the Normandy Landings, is the only survivor of the paratroopers who participated in this operation. «The bravery and determination of these fighters played a crucial role in the liberation of our country. “His heroic actions leave an indelible mark on our history,” said Macron.

In Saint-Lô, a Norman town that was completely destroyed by Allied bombs, Macron paid tribute to the civilians of the war. «These dead were the victims of our fight for freedom and the homeland. Yes, eight decades later, the nation must recognize them,” he considered. It is estimated that there were between 50,000 and 70,000 civilian casualties in the Allied bombing raids in France, of which 10,000 died in Normandy during the summer of 1944. Many towns in the region were destroyed, including the port of Le Havre and Caen.

At the end of the day, Macron moved to this city to pay tribute to the seventy people, most of them members of the resistance, who were shot in his prison on June 6, 1944 by order of the Gestapo, coinciding with the Normandy’s landing. The Germans took the bodies and their relatives never recovered their remains.

In the midst of the campaign for Sunday’s European elections, the opposition has accused Macron of wanting to use the Normandy Landings for electoral purposes to mobilize his voters. “The president has not chosen either the date of the anniversary of the Landings or the date of the European elections,” recall the Macronists. It remains to be seen whether or not there will be a ‘commemoration effect’ in the election, in which the extreme right is the clear favorite.