By Jonathan Lemire, The Associated Press and Kevin Freking, The Associated Press
President Donald Trump speaks during an event to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day in Portsmouth, England Wednesday, June 5, 2019. World leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump are gathering Wednesday on the south coast of England to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (Matt Dunham/AP)
PORTSMOUTH, England — President Donald Trump read from a prayer delivered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as he joined other world leaders and veterans Wednesday in marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
Roosevelt went on national radio on June 6, 1944, to address the U.S. for the first time about the Normandy invasion. Trump, with images of an American flag and Roosevelt projected behind him, read to crowd: “Almighty God, our sons, pride of our nation, this day, have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our republic, our religion and our civilization and to set free a suffering humanity.”
Trump traveled to the southern coast of England Wednesday to pay respects to American service members and allies who helped rescue Europe from Nazi Germany. He sat in a VIP area between Queen Elizabeth II and the first lady during the program, which focused on a telling of events leading up to D-Day. Some 300 World War II veterans also attended the seaside ceremony.
A chilly breeze blew off the English Channel as Trump arrived for the event, the first of two he is attending to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day when the Allied soldiers, sailors and airmen conducted an invasion that helped liberate Europe from Nazi Germany.
Trump joined in giving a standing ovation to a group of World War II vets who appeared on stage as the commemoration began.
After the event, Trump visited with American World War II veterans who were among Allied troops on D-Day. He was to have lunch and meet briefly with German Chancellor Angela Merkel before departing for Ireland to meet with Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and stay at his golf course in the village of Doonbeg.
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World War II re-enactors stand looking out to sea on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, at dawn on Thursday, June 6, 2019 during commemorations of the 75th anniversary of D-Day. (Thibault Camus/AP)
Re-enactors stand at the shore of Omaha Beach at sunrise as part of events to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day on Omaha Beach in Vierville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, Thursday, June 6, 2019. World leaders are gathered Thursday in France to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (Cedric Lecoz via AP)
President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron, watch a flyover during a ceremony to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the American Normandy cemetery, Thursday, June 6, 2019, in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. (Alex Brandon/AP)
First lady Melania Trump, President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron, watch a flyover during a ceremony to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the American Normandy cemetery, Thursday, June 6, 2019, in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. (Alex Brandon/AP)
President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, talk to a World War II veteran during a ceremony to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the American Normandy cemetery, Thursday, June 6, 2019, in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. (Alex Brandon/AP)
President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron greet veterans as they arrive to a ceremony to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day at The Normandy American Cemetery, Thursday, June 6, 2019, in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
U.S. President Donald Trump salutes to veterans prior to a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, Thursday, June 6, 2019. World leaders are gathered Thursday in France to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus/AP)
U.S. World War II veteran Jacques Michienzi, center, stands up among other veterans during a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, Thursday, June 6, 2019. World leaders are gathered Thursday in France to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (David Vincent/AP)
British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron attend a Franco-British ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day landings at Ver-Sur-Mer, Normandy, Thursday, June 6, 2019.(Philippe Wojazer/Pool via AP)
President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron, walk through The Normandy American Cemetery, following a ceremony to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, Thursday, June 6, 2019, in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France. (Alex Brandon/AP)
An honor guard marches on stage during a ceremony to mark the 75th Anniversary of D-Day, when the Allied soldiers, sailors and airmen conducted an invasion that helped liberate Europe from Nazi Germany, Wednesday, June 5, 2019, in Portsmouth, England. (Alex Brandon/AP)
A flyover trails colored smoke to conclude a ceremony to mark the 75th Anniversary of D-Day, when the Allied soldiers, sailors and airmen conducted an invasion that helped liberate Europe from Nazi Germany, Wednesday, June 5, 2019, in Portsmouth, England. (Alex Brandon/AP)
Britain's Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump and Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, from left, applaud as they watch a fly past at the end of an event to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day in Portsmouth, England Wednesday, June 5, 2019. World leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump are gathering Wednesday on the south coast of England to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (Matt Dunham/AP)
Queen Elizabeth II, President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump and Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, from left, applaud as they watch a fly past at the end of an event to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day in Portsmouth, England, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. World leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump are gathering Wednesday on the south coast of England to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings. (Matt Dunham/AP)
A veteran wipes his eyes during a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day, Wednesday, June 5, 2019, in Portsmouth, England. (Alex Brandon/AP)
D-Day veterans gather during a D-Day commemoration event at the Historical Dockyard in Portsmouth, southern England, Sunday June 2, 2019. There are many events over the coming days to mark the 75th anniversary of the landings by the Allied forces on Tuesday June 6, 1944, in Normandy, France, that became known as D-Day. (Andrew Matthews/PA via AP)
Soldiers from the U.S. 75th Ranger Regiment, in period dress, climb the cliff of Pointe-du-Hoc in Cricqueville-en-Bessin, Normandy, France, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. During the American assault of Omaha and Utah beaches on June 6, 1944, U.S. Army Rangers scaled the 100-foot cliffs to seize German artillery pieces that could have fired on the American landing troops. (Thibault Camus/AP)
Rangers from the U.S. 75th Ranger Regiment, in period dress, hold the American flag after scaling the cliffs of Pointe-du-Hoc in Cricqueville-en-Bessin, Normandy, France, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. During the American assault of Omaha and Utah beaches on June 6, 1944, U.S. Army Rangers scaled the 100-foot cliffs to seize German artillery pieces that could have fired on the American landing troops. (Thibault Camus/AP)
WWII enthusiasts watch French and British parachutists jumping during a commemorative parachute jump over Sannerville, Normandy, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. Extensive commemorations are being held in the U.K. and France to honor the nearly 160,000 troops from Britain, the United States, Canada and other nations who landed in Normandy on June 6, 1944, in history's biggest amphibious invasion. (Thibault Camus/AP)
Parachutists jump from C-47 transport planes in Carentan, Normandy, France, Wednesday, June 5, 2019. Approximately 200 parachutists participated in the jump over Normandy on Wednesday, replicating a jump made by U.S. soldiers on June 6, 1944, as a prelude to the seaborne invasions on D-Day. (Rafael Yaghobzadeh/AP)
Enthusiasts ride a jeep on the beach of Arromanches, Tuesday, June 4, 2019, in Normandy. Extensive commemorations are being held in the U.K. and France this week to honor the nearly 160,000 troops from Britain, the United States, Canada and other nations who landed in Normandy on June 6, 1944, in history's biggest amphibious invasion. (Thibault Camus/AP)
In this June 6, 1944, file photo, provided by the U.S. Army Signal Corps, Gen. Dwight Eisenhower gives the order of the day, "Full Victory - Nothing Else" to paratroopers in England just before they board their planes to participate in the first assault in the invasion of the continent of Europe. (U.S. Army Signal Corps Photo via AP)
In this June 6, 1944, file photo, U.S. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, left, gives the order of the day to paratroopers in England prior to boarding their planes to participate in the first assault of the Normandy invasion. A dwindling number of D-Day veterans will be on hand in Normandy in June 2019, when international leaders gather to honor them on the invasion’s 75th anniversary. (U.S. Army Signal Corps via AP)
In this June 6, 1944, file photo, members of an American landing unit help their comrades ashore during the Normandy invasion. The men reached the zone code-named Utah Beach, near Sainte- Mere-Eglise, on a life raft after their landing craft was hit and sunk by German coastal defenses. (Louis Weintraub/Pool Photo via AP, File)
During a news conference Tuesday, Trump said he is grateful for the warm welcome he received from the British royal family and prime minister as “we remember the heroes who laid down their lives to rescue civilization itself.” He played down protests of his visit, describing the thousands of people who demonstrated in London as a “small protest.”
Trump has used his speeches to emphasize a longstanding bond between the U.S. and Britain. He noted that more than 1.5 million Americans were stationed in England in advance of the invasion.
“The bonds of friendship forged here and sealed in blood on those hallowed beaches will endure forever,” Trump said at the news conference.
They are back, some for the first time since war stole their innocence 75 years ago on Normandy’s D-Day beaches.
Also on Tuesday, Trump and first lady Melania Trump toured the Churchill War Rooms, the British government’s underground command center during World War II. Then it was time for a fancy dinner that the Trumps hosted at the U.S. ambassador’s residence for Prince Charles, his wife, Camilla, and other dignitaries.
While at the Churchill War Rooms, he worked to clean up a diplomatic spat, telling “Good Morning Britain” host Piers Morgan that he meant no royal insult when he used the term “nasty” in discussing the American-born Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle. The phrase generated a lot of media coverage and Trump has worked diligently to explain that he was speaking specifically on her comments about him, not about her.
Seventy-five years ago, Hollywood director George Stevens stood on the deck of the HMS Belfast to film the start of the D-Day invasion.
Trump said: “She was nasty to me. And that’s okay for her to be nasty, it’s not good for me to be nasty to her and I wasn’t.”
Trump said the controversy did not come up when he spoke with Markle’s husband, Prince Harry, who he says “couldn’t have been nicer.”
While overseas, the president’s mind appeared to be on matters back at home, as he unleashed Twitter attacks on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, former Vice President Joe Biden and even actress and singer Bette Midler. A couple of the broadsides came in about 1 a.m. local time.
Trump will also make his first presidential visit to Ireland on Wednesday, spending two nights at his golf club in Doonbeg, which sits above the Atlantic. After Dublin balked at holding a meeting in the city, a deal was struck for Trump to meet Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar at the VIP lounge at Shannon Airport, hardly the grand setting usually afforded a meeting of world leaders.
Associated Press writers Gregory Katz and Jill Lawless in London and Darlene Superville and Deb Riechmann in Washington contributed to this report.
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