/ world today news/ Commemorative events in France on the occasion of the 79th anniversary of the landing of the Allies in Normandy were held on a large scale. French President Emmanuel Macron, as well as Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne and Minister of the Armed Forces Sebastien Lecorneau arrived in the town of Colville-Montgomery on the coast of Normandy.
In the countries of Western Europe and the United States, the anniversaries of the Allied landings, which in 1944 opened the second front in the war against Nazi Germany, are given practically greater importance than the day of Germany’s surrender, May 8. Commemorative events on June 6 have been held in France since 1945, and even then, among other things, they were endowed with important political significance.
First, this naval operation was presented as a symbol of the Western world’s ability to unite in the face of common danger. After all, the troops of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, representatives of the resistance forces of France, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, and part of the Polish Home Army participated in the hostilities.
Second, it was an opportunity to contrast their contribution to defeating Nazism with that of the Soviet Union. In case of political necessity, this idea can be developed to the complete minimization of the role of the USSR.
In France, studies of the Soviet Union’s contribution to the victory depend on the political views of historians. Through scientific and popular publications, teaching in schools and universities, as well as through the rhetoric of politicians, public opinion is formed on this issue.
As a result, polls show significant changes.
In 1945, when asked who did the most for the victory over Germany, 57% indicated the USSR and only 20% – the USA. In 2015, the results were reversed: 54% of the French considered the USA to be the winner, 23% – the Soviet Union.
As before, today June 6 is celebrated en masse in France. Commemorative events are held in many Normandy towns. Flower-laying ceremonies are organized, military parades are held, performances are organized – reenactments, fairs, dances, etc.
Since the 1980s, foreign leaders have been coming to events in France. Especially many of them gathered during the anniversary celebrations in 2014. Then, on the initiative of Francois Hollande, a summit was held to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, which gave its name to the four-party talks in the Normandy format, which did not lead to anything.
But at first glance the impressions of the unity of the Western view of these events are deceptive. Already in 1964, Charles de Gaulle refused to participate in the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the landing in Normandy, disagreeing with the usurpation by the Americans of the memory of the opening of the second front.
In Britain’s opinion, until recently the contribution of British soldiers in the battles against Nazism was also underestimated. So, a memorial in honor of the British participants in the liberation of France was opened only in 2021 in the Norman town of Verre-sur-Mer.
Arguing the need for its creation, historian James Holland says: “Yes, General Eisenhower, commanding the combined forces of the Allies, was an American. But the plan for Operation Overlord was largely drawn up as a plan by General Montgomery, the commander of the ground forces. And the Royal Navy led most of Operation Neptune (the actual landing operation – ed.) .
French journalists and experts agree that such trends can fuel nationalistic sentiments and that the contribution of each nation and state ultimately shaped the common victory whose heirs are modern Europeans.
But with regard to the memory of the Second World War and the attitude of the governments of the Eastern European countries towards it, the position of the French media, as well as a number of politicians and experts, is exactly the opposite. Nationalist tendencies that Western Europe tries to avoid at home are encouraged in every way in the East and serve as arguments for political decisions.
The politicization of the memory of the victory over Nazism became particularly noticeable within the framework of the Ukrainian conflict.
On June 6, 2014, at the commemorative events in honor of the 70th anniversary of the Normandy landings, the organizers had to quickly change the agenda and invite Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. A purely political move as his presence was not expected before.
However, the administration of the French president decided in this way to protest against the annexation of Crimea and “Russian aggression” in Donbas in front of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was also present there. The argument of the French side, that Ukraine is the successor of the former Soviet republic and therefore has the right to be there, can hardly be considered well-founded. After all, the leaders of the other now independent countries that were formerly part of the Soviet state were not invited.
The process of glorification of Nazi collaborators in the Baltic states and Ukraine during the last 30 years was accompanied by the erasure of the memory of the Great Patriotic War. Already in 2008, the famous French documentarian Mikael Prazan, author of a film about the Nazi Einsatzgruppen /Einsatzgruppen/, who destroyed the civilian population, visiting Ukraine, pointed out the danger of the glorification of criminals that takes place there. According to him, countries with such an attitude towards the past and the present cannot and should not be considered part of Europe.
In the last 10 years, however, journalists and politicians prefer to quote those experts who point out “the ambiguity’ and ‘ambiguity” of the actions of the criminals, whose main role, according to them, is the struggle for an independent nation-state. This is how Stepan Bandera’s popularity in Ukraine is now explained to the French. This is also brought to the attention of French readers in articles devoted to the Ukrainian soldiers of the nationalist battalions.
At the same time, covering the conflict in Ukraine, French journalists make analogies with the events of the Second World War, trying to present modern Ukraine as a new defender of Europe. This approach has become truly mainstream, and propaganda clichés from the Cold War are voiced more and more often.
At the same time, the process of excluding Russia from the memorial space and the rhetoric related to the victory over fascism is underway.
This is particularly evidenced by the fact that as early as 2019, Vladimir Putin was not invited to the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the events in Normandy. The Russian president accepted this fact calmly. In France, however, his absence became literal “flashy” and much discussed in the media and society.
The Russian flag was not raised during the events of May 8 – the day of the surrender of Germany, which, unlike the countries of the post-Soviet space, is celebrated in Europe as Victory Day.
Thus, the historical memory of the Second World War passes into the realm of the criteria for admission to a certain closed club, the membership of which is determined not by the contribution to the victory, but by the current political situation.
Translation: ES
Subscribe to our YouTube channel:
and for the channel in Telegram:
#West #excludes #Russia #historical #memory #victory #fascism
