A dwindling number of D-Day veterans are calling for the lessons of World War II to be remembered on the anniversary

OMAHA BEACH, France (AP) — As young soldiers, they were Waded ashore in Normandy By shooting to fight the Nazis. On Thursday, a dwindling number of World War II veterans in a procession of wheelchairs joined a new generation of leaders to honor the dead, the living and the struggle for democracy in carrying remembrances on and around those same shores where they landed exactly 80 years ago. On Victory Day.

the War in Ukraine It overshadowed the celebrations, and is a grim example in modern times Life and cities Suffering once again through the war in Europe.

Breaking dawn Eight decades after Allied forces landed on five code-named beaches — Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juneau and Sword — Memorial Day was ushered in by the allied nations now standing together again behind Ukraine.

World War II ally Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, was not invited, and US President Joe Biden has directly linked Ukraine’s fight for its nascent democracy to the battle to defeat Nazi Germany.

“Giving in to bullies and submitting to dictators is simply unthinkable,” Biden said. “If we do that, it means we will forget what happened here on these sacred shores.”

With the deaths and injuries on both sides in Ukraine estimated at hundreds of thousands, commemorations of that anniversary were held More than 4,400 Allied dead On Victory Day and tens of thousands of others, Among them were French civilianswho were killed in the ensuing Battle of Normandy, are terrified of this The lessons of World War II have been lost.

“There are things worth fighting for,” Walter Stitt, who fought with tanks and will turn 100 in July, said while visiting Omaha Beach this week. “Though I wish there was another way to do it instead of trying to kill each other.”

“We’ll learn one of these days, but I won’t be there for it,” he said.

While the now centenarian veterans were revisiting old memories and Fallen comrades are buried in Normandy cemeteriesUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s presence at the international commemoration of D-Day was met with rapturous applause, merging World War II’s horrific past with the fraught present. More applause followed when a giant screen showed the Ukrainian leader speaking with American veterans.

French President Emmanuel Macron awarded the Legion of Honor to 11 American veterans and a British woman. Among the Americans was Eduard Berthold, a pilot who flew three missions over France in May 1944, before participating in Operation Saint-Lô in Normandy, on D-Day. He flew 35 combat missions during World War II.

“You have come here because the free world needs every one of you, and you have answered the call,” Macron said. “You came here to make France a free nation. I am back here today at home, if I may say so.

Macron also awarded the Legion of Honor to 103-year-old Christiane Lamb, the daughter of a Royal Navy admiral who was studying in Normandy in 1939 when her father called her back to London. There, Lamb created detailed maps to guide landing craft crews on D-Day.

The French president leaned towards Lamb in a wheelchair, pinned the medal and kissed her on the cheek, describing her as one of the “heroes in the shadows.”

Recognizing the inevitability of age and time for World War II veterans, huge crowds of enthusiasts wearing the uniforms and riding vehicles of the time, and tourists enjoying the spectacle, flooded Normandy to celebrate the 80th anniversary. At the international ceremony held later, the veterans received a standing ovation as they were paraded in front of the stands in a lavish row of wheelchairs to avoid the long walk across the beachfront promenade.

“We just have to remember the sacrifices of everyone who gave us our freedom,” said Becky Krubetz, a Briton who now lives in Florida, whose grandfather served with the British Army during World War II and was captured in Malta. She was among a crowd of thousands of people that stretched for several kilometers along Utah Beach, the westernmost of the D-Day beaches.

In a quiet place away from the official celebrations, Frenchman Christophe Recifort gave his own salute, raising the American flag that he had purchased during a trip to Pennsylvania to honor those who died on D-Day.

“To forget them is to let them die again,” the 57-year-old said as he and his daughter Julie carefully refolded the flag into a tight triangle, adding that for those now dying in Ukraine fighting the Russian invasion, he added. The army was also on his mind.

“All these forces came to liberate a country whose ideology they did not know — democracy and freedom — is now under severe pressure,” he said.

For Warren Goss, a 99-year-old American D-Day veteran who landed in the first waves on Utah Beach, a visit years later to the same spot where he watched his comrade fall to the oncoming fire confirmed that the sacrifice was worth it.

He told the King and Prime Minister of Denmark: “I looked at the beach and it was beautiful, and all the people and children were playing, and I saw boys and girls walking, holding each other’s hands, and they were reclaiming their lives.” Every word is his.

The pleasant atmosphere, fueled by World War II-era jeeps and trucks tearing through lanes crowded with hedgerows so deadly to Allied troops who battled the entrenched German defenders, and actors playing war in the sand where D-Day soldiers fell, is leaving. Open the question of what meaning anniversary celebrations will have once the veterans are gone.

But on the 80th anniversary, they will be VIPs at celebrations across the coast of Normandy as the largest land, sea and air fleet ever to penetrate Hitler’s defenses in Western Europe and help hasten his downfall 11 months later.

“They were really the golden generation, these 17- and 18-year-olds doing something very brave,” said James Becker, a 56-year-old Dutchman, looking out onto Utah Beach.

Further up the coast at Gold Beach, military bagpipes played at the same time British troops landed there 80 years ago.

UK King Charles III and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak were among those who attended a ceremony honoring the troops who landed there and at Swords Beach, while Prince William and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined others at a Canadian Forces ceremony at Juno Beach.

In his speech, the king told the crowd that the world was fortunate that a generation “did not back down” when called upon.

“Our commitment to remembering what they stood for and what they achieved for all of us can never diminish,” he said.

Speaking in French, Charles also paid tribute to the “unimaginable number” of French civilians killed in the Battle of Normandy, and the courage and sacrifice of the French Resistance.

Those who traveled to Normandy include Women who were among the millions Who made grenade launchers, tanks, other weapons and other toys Vital roles in World War II Long overshadowed by the martial exploits of men.

The veterans, who are honored everywhere they go in wheelchairs and walk with canes, use their voices to repeat a message they hope will remain timeless: Never forget.

“We weren’t doing it for the accolades and awards. We were doing it to save our country,” said Anna Mae Creer, 98, who worked on building B-17 and B-29 bombers. In saving the world.”

___

Jill Lawless in London, and Geoffrey Schaeffer, Mark Carlson, Bella Schandelski, Helena Alves and Alex Turnbull along the Normandy coast contributed to this report.