D-Day 80th anniversary: Biden calls D-Day beginning of 'crusade' to free Europe
June 6 (UPI) -- Calling D-Day a "crusade" to liberate Western Europe from Nazi Germany, President Joe Biden told attendees at the 80th recognition of the storming of Normandy on Thursday that their sacrifice is still felt today.
Biden joined other world leaders for the solemn ceremony in France and stories of heroism and said triumph over fascism were a reminder of the work it takes to keep history from repeating itself.
Biden said Americans participating in D-Day knew that their chance of dying was high when they stormed the beaches of France, "but they went anyway."
"They knew, beyond any doubt, that there were things worth fighting and dying for," Biden said. "Freedom is worth it. Democracy is worth it. America is worth it. The world is worth it, then, now and always."
Biden said while it would take another 11 months to see the tide turn in the favor of the allies, the results proved to be worth the effort.
"Here we proved that the ideas of our democracy were stronger than any army or combination of armies in the entire world," Biden said. "We proved something else here as well -- the unbreakable unity of the allies. Here with us are men who served alongside of the Americans that day, wearing different flags on their arms, but fighting with the same courage, for the same purpose."
Biden said that unity allowed the allies to accomplish together more than they ever could on their own in bringing an end to World War II.
"It was a powerful illustration of how alliances, real alliances, make us stronger. It's a lesson I pray we Americans will never forget. Together, we won the war. We rebuilt Europe, including our former enemies," he said.
D-Day ceremonies kicked off Thursday on Normandy with Britain's King Charles III expressing "the most profound sense of gratitude" for the sacrifice made there by allies to turn the tide in World War II.
"How fortunate we were, and the entire free world, that a generation of men and women in the United Kingdom and other allied nations did not flinch when the moment came to face that test," Charles said during the speech.
"On the beaches of Normandy, on the seas beyond and in the skies overhead, our armed forces carried out their duty with a humbling sense of resolve and determination - qualities so characteristic of that remarkable wartime generation."
U.S. President Joe Biden, who is scheduled to speak later in the ceremony, joined other world leaders at the 80th anniversary of the historic landing against German troops.
The festivities included numerous re-enactments. For example, members of the 47 Commando Royal Marines came ashore at Asnelles on Gold Beach, the same place where British soldiers arrived on D-Day 80 years ago for a massive assault against the Nazis.
French President Emmanuel Macron honored Christian Lamb, who was an officer in the Women's Royal Naval Service, who helped Winston Churchill in planning the D-Day landings from his secret war rooms in London.
"You have set us an example we will not forget," Macron said in giving her the French Legion d'honneur medal.
British actor Martin Freeman read the memories of Joe Mines, of the Second Battalion Essex, to open the ceremony.
"I was 19 when I landed, but I was still a boy," Freeman said, reading the words of Mines. "I don't care what people say. I wasn't a man. I was a boy. And I didn't have any idea of war and killing. I want to pay my respects to those who didn't make it. May they rest in peace."
