Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used the 82nd anniversary of D-Day to take a shot at NATO and European immigration policies in a speech meant to honor fallen allied troops at the Normandy American Cemetery in France on Saturday.

More than 2,500 Americans died while storming the beaches of Normandy in the D-Day operation that marked the beginning of the end of the Nazi regime and fascism in Europe.

The Trump administration has long criticized NATO for failing to enthusiastically uphold their end of the bargain to defend allies against aggression, which he hinted at in his speech.

“The men buried here fought in a war-fighting alliance where every partner brought its full measure of industry, courage, and sacrifice, not empty slogans, not lavish summits, not communiques — real allies doing real things, taking real losses for a shared cause worth fighting and dying for. Each nation pulled its weight. Each nation bled,” Hegseth said.

He added, “America will lead, and we must. But capable allies must be right there with us, shoulder to shoulder, in the breach when it matters. In the years since these beaches, much of the West, in some places, in some quarters, and in some capitals, grew comfortable. We forgot that freedom is not free. We forgot that peace is not wished into being, it is bought with purpose, with honor, and with strength.”

Hegseth continued:

The men who landed on these beaches knew this. The question we ask ourselves is, do we? It’s past time we remember what they knew. Their legacy demands far more than quiet reflection. It requires our active vigilance. Sadly, today, different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies, which is in Spain, in Italy, in Greece, and Bulgaria. Boats and men arrive.
When will European capitals do something about that invasion? Or is it too late? I pray not. And I believe not.

The men who fought and died here restored freedom to Europe. That freedom must be maintained by this generation of leaders and warfighters, or what they fought for was merely temporary. As our great President Ronald Reagan once said, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. You don’t pass it to the next generation in the bloodstream. It must be defended by each and every generation.” We stand by our allies, and we expect our allies capable and ready to stand alongside us.

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