Bush warned against comparing D-Day to Iraq
French officials fear George Bush will inflame anti-American sentiment in France this weekend by linking the D-Day landings with the invasion of Iraq.
Advisers close to Jacques Chirac have let it be known that any reference to Iraq during the 60th anniversary of the Allied invasion of France on Sunday would be ill-advised and unwelcome.
Both presidents will address second world war veterans and VIPs during a service at the American cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy.
"He'd better not go too far down the road of making a historical comparison because it's likely to backfire on him," said a source close to President Chirac.
So of course...
Bush Likens War on Terror to Struggle Against ` Tyrants ' of World War II
Bush told the 981 academy graduates that on Sunday he will visit the beaches of Normandy, ``where the fate of millions turned on the courage of thousands.'' He drew a parallel to the world that will confront the new Air Force officers.
``In some ways, this struggle we're in is unique; in other ways it resembles the great clashes of the last century between those who put their trust in tyrants and those who put their trust in liberty,'' Bush said. ``The terrorists underestimate the strength of free peoples.''
While drawing parallels with World War II, Bush quoted General Dwight Eisenhower's comments before the D-Day landing.
``Soldiers, sailors and airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force,'' Bush said. ``The eyes the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.'' He omitted part of Eisenhower's 1944 quote, where the general told soldiers ``you are about to embark upon the great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months.''