Biden Warns of Global Democracy Risk on D-Day Anniversary
On D-Day's 80th anniversary, US President Joe Biden warned that democracy worldwide is at risk as he joined other leaders to mark the 1944 Normandy landings that helped defeat Nazi Germany in World War II.
Haunted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Biden, Britain's King Charles III, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky paid tribute to the Allied troops who stormed the beaches on June 6, 1944.
The commemorations provided a symbolic backdrop for talks on how Ukraine can regain ground. Biden vowed never to abandon Ukraine, taking a swipe at Donald Trump who has questioned NATO's importance.
"We're living in a time when democracy is more at risk across the world than at any point since WWII," Biden said. "Isolationism was not the answer 80 years ago and is not the answer today."
He warned that surrendering to bullies like Russian President Vladimir Putin, a "tyrant bent on domination", would threaten all of Europe. Zelensky said "true unity can prevail today" as it did in 1944.
At the British ceremony, King Charles said: "Free nations must stand together to oppose tyranny."
While underlining Russia's pariah status, the ceremonies sprinkled acknowledgements of the Soviet contribution to defeating Nazism.
The biggest guests were 180 surviving WWII veterans in their 90s or 100s. Macron awarded France's highest honor to a dozen. Veteran Cecil Newton, 100, said he could still "see" his fallen comrades.
