President Trump, British Prime Minister Theresa May and other world leaders are gathering Wednesday on the south coast of England to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, honoring the Allied forces who risked and gave their lives in the invasion that helped liberate Europe from Nazi Germany.

The Royal British Legion has brought about 300 veterans, aged 91 to 101, to the ceremonies in Portsmouth, where many of the troops embarked for Normandy on June 5, 1944. After a flyover by the Royal Air Force and a salute from the Royal Navy, the veterans will return to the landing beaches overnight, just as they did 75 years ago.

"The Normandy landings 75 years ago were a moment of historic international cooperation," British Prime Minister Theresa May said. "And it is right that at the heart of today's commemorations are the veterans who fought to secure the liberty and the peace that we now enjoy."

The event, which kicks off two days of D-Day anniversary observances, is intended as a tribute to the troops who shaped history during the dangerous mission to reach beachheads and fight in German-occupied France.

REMEMBER THESE TWO YOUNG MEN WHO HELPED TO WIN D-DAY

D-Day saw more than 150,000 Allied troops land on the beaches of Normandy in northwest France on June 6, 1944, carried by 7,000 boats. The Battle of Normandy, codenamed Operation Overlord, was a turning point in the war, and helped bring about Nazi Germany's defeat in May 1945.

Planning to attend are presidents, prime ministers and other representatives of the countries that fought alongside Britain in Normandy: the United States, Canada, Australia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Luxembourg, Denmark, France, Greece, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Poland.

The leader of the country that was the enemy in 1944, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is also attending.

Britain has promised "unprecedented commemorations," involving testimony from veterans and military spectacle, including a flyby of 24 vintage and modern military aircraft.

In Portsmouth, dignitaries plan to read from historical documents linked to D-Day. In May's case, it's a letter written by Capt. Norman Skinner of the Royal Army Service Corps to his wife, Gladys, on June 3, 1944, a few days before the invasion. It was in his pocket when he landed in Normandy.

"I can imagine you in the garden having tea with Janey and Anne getting ready to put them to bed," wrote Skinner, who was killed the day after D-Day. "Although I would give anything to be back with you, I have not yet had any wish at all to back down from the job we have to do."

On Thursday the focus shifts to France, where commemorations will be held at simple military cemeteries near the Normandy beaches.

Some events were already held in France early Wednesday morning, with U.S. Army Rangers climbing the jagged cliffs of Normandy's Pointe du Hoc to honor the men who scaled them under fire 75 years ago.

Elderly veterans looked on as members of the 75th Ranger Regiment started mounting the limestone promontory at dawn, pulling themselves up on ropes one by one, seagulls swooping above.

They were recreating a journey taken by the U.S. Army's 2nd and 5th Ranger Battalions to destroy Nazi guns atop the cliffs. The operation helped prepare the way for Allied troops landing on beaches up a few miles up the coast.

Of the 235 men who took on the cliffs in 1944, only 90 were fit for battle two days later.

Elsewhere in Normandy parachutists were jumping from C-47 transporters in World War II colors and other aircraft, aiming for fields of wild flowers on the outskirts of Carentan, one of the early objectives for Allied troops.

Among the jumpers will be American D-Day veteran Tom Rice, 97. He jumped into Normandy with thousands of other parachutists in 1944, and recalled it as "the worst jump I ever had."

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Like many other veterans , Rice said he remains troubled by the war.

"We did a lot of destruction, damage. And we chased the Germans out and coming back here is a matter of closure," he said. "You can close the issue now."

This is a developing story. Check back for updates

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> Portsmouth, United Kingdom | AFP | US President Donald Trump, Queen Elizabeth II and 300 veterans are to gather on the south coast of England on Wednesday for a poignant ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Other world leaders will join them in Portsmouth for Britain’s national event to commemorate the Allied invasion of the Normandy beaches — one of the turning points of World War II.

Trump, Queen Elizabeth and British Prime Minister Theresa May will be joined by Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel for an event with the veterans, the youngest of whom are now in their 90s, marking the boats’ departure on the eve of the battle.

It will be the last act of Trump’s three-day state visit to Britain.

Portsmouth was the main departure point for the largest amphibious assault in history, when some 156,000 US, British, Canadian and other Allied troops sailed for the beaches of northern France.

The Battle of Normandy on June 6, 1944 led to the liberation of Europe and helped bring about the end of World War II.

In a joint D-Day proclamation marking the anniversary, the 16 nations attending Wednesday’s ceremony affirmed their shared responsibility to ensure that the horrors of World War II are never repeated.

“Over the last 75 years, our nations have stood up for peace in Europe and globally, for democracy, tolerance and the rule of law,” it said.

“We re-commit today to those shared values because they support the stability and prosperity of our nations and our people. We will work together as allies and friends to defend these freedoms whenever they are threatened.”

“In this way, we salute the surviving veterans of D-Day and we honour the memories of those who came before us.”

The ceremony is the first time that so many world leaders have gathered in Britain since the London 2012 Olympics.

The prime ministers of Australia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the president of Greece, New Zealand’s governor-general, Slovakia’s deputy PM and the Danish ambassador are due to attend.

The event on Southsea Common includes an hour-long production recounting the story of the invasion with testimony from veterans, theatrical performances and live music, as well as a flypast.

Some 4,000 military personnel, 26 British military aircraft and 11 British naval vessels will participate.

In the event’s official programme, Queen Elizabeth, 93, said: “I am sure that these commemorations will provide an opportunity to honour those who made extraordinary sacrifices to secure freedom in Europe. They must never be forgotten.”

May will read a letter written by Captain Norman Skinner to his wife Gladys on June 3, 1944.

The letter was in the British soldier’s pocket when he landed on Sword Beach in Normandy on June 6. He was killed the next day.

May will attend a reception with veterans and a lunch with world leaders.

She will call for continued Western unity in tackling the world’s security threats.

“Their solidarity and determination in the defence of our freedom remains a lesson to us all,” she was to say.

The D-Day commemorations are among May’s last official duties before she steps down as leader of the governing Conservative Party on Friday.

That will trigger a leadership contest. The winner, chosen from 11 candidates, will become the next prime minister by the end of July.

Trump said Tuesday that the D-Day troops stormed the beaches to ensure that their people would forever remain sovereign and free.

“Let us renew our pledge… that the cause for which they died shall live,” he said.

The state visit saw Trump join the royal family for a lavish state banquet, while the president promised Britain a “phenomenal” post-Brexit trade deal.

After Queen Elizabeth formally bids him farewell, Trump is off to his golf resort in Ireland before heading to further D-Day commemorations in Normandy on Thursday.

The village of Doonbeg on Ireland’s west coast has been decked out in US flags to welcome Trump. </s> COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France (Reuters) - France will never forget the sacrifice of the Allied troops who liberated it from Nazi Germany, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday, the 75th anniversary of the D-Day operation that helped bring World War Two to an end.

U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May joined Macron at separate ceremonies along a 80km (50 mile) stretch of Normandy coastline, where more than 150,000 soldiers landed on June 6, 1944, under a hail of German fire.

“We know what we owe to you, our veterans: our freedom. On behalf of my country, I want to say ‘thank you’,” Macron told several dozen American D-Day combatants at a U.S. war cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach, one of five landing spots in Normandy.

“France will never forget.”

Macron awarded the Legion d’honneur, France’s highest award for merit, to five U.S. veterans and embraced each man warmly.

The Normandy landings were months in the planning and were kept secret from Hitler and his forces despite a huge trans-Atlantic mobilisation of industry and manpower.

Under the cover of darkness, thousands of Allied paratroopers jumped behind Germany’s coastal defences. Then, as day broke, warships pounded German positions before hundreds of landing craft disgorged the infantry troops under a barrage of machine-gun fire and artillery.

Some veterans say the sea and sand turned red with blood during the operation. Dozens of U.S. rangers were felled by German machine-guns as they scaled the cliffs rising up from Omaha Beach to Colleville-sur-Mer, where the U.S. cemetery lies.

“You are among the very greatest Americans who will ever live,” Trump said in his address, turning to the surviving veterans. “You are the pride of our nation, you are the glory of our republic and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

“These men moved through the fires of hell,” he said. “They came here and saved freedom, and then they went home and showed us all what freedom is about.”

People applauded as one of the veterans, 94-year-old Private Russell Pickett, rose shakily to his feet. “Tough guy,” Trump said, before Macron helped lower Pickett back into his seat.

“SPECIAL GENERATION”

The Normandy landings remain the largest ever amphibious invasion and paved the way for western Europe’s liberation.

Inaugurating a memorial to the 22,000 soldiers under British command who were killed on June 6, 1944, and in the ensuing battle for Normandy, British Prime Minister Theresa May saluted the bravery of the soldiers, many of whom were still boys when they waded ashore as shells screamed overhead.

French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S President Donald Trump stand during a ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, June 6, 2019. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

“It’s almost impossible to grasp the raw courage it must have taken that day to leap from landing craft and into the surf despite the fury of battle,” May told a small gathering that included Macron and veterans, their uniforms laden with medals.

“These young men belonged to a very special generation ... whose incomparable spirit shaped our post-war world,” she said.

The devastation wrought by two world wars in the first half of the 20th century fostered a decades-long era of cooperation between European capitals determined to protect their hard-fought peace, giving rise to what is now the European Union.

But even as Britain now tries to sever its ties with the bloc after four decades of membership, Macron told May some links between France and Britain were indestructible.

“Nothing will ever take away the links of spilled blood and shared values. The debates of the present in no way take away from the past.”

SACRIFICED LIVES

An hour after sunrise, under clear blue skies, a lone piper on the remnants of an artificial harbour played Highland Laddie to mark the hour the first British soldier set foot on French sand. The Mulberry harbour was built to supply allied troops as they pushed the Germans back.

Restored wartime jeeps and amphibious vehicles lined the beach at Arromanches and in villages along the Normandy shore the flags of Britain, Canada and the United States, the main contributors to the Allied force, fluttered in the breeze.

Slideshow (21 Images)

The commemorations come against the backdrop of two years of forthright diplomacy and “America First” policymaking by Trump and his administration that have shaken the NATO alliance and tested relations with allies including Britain and France.

On the eve of the anniversary, France’s president evoked the spirit of D-Day, saying: “These allied forces that together freed us from the German yoke, and from tyranny, are the same ones that were able to build the existing multilateral structures after World War Two.

“We must not repeat history, and remind ourselves what was built on the basis of the war,” he said. </s> OMAHA BEACH, France — Standing on the windswept beaches and bluffs of Normandy, a dwindling number of aging veterans of history’s greatest air and sea invasion received the thanks and praise of a world transformed by their sacrifice.

The mission now, they said, was to honor the dead and keep their memory alive, 75 years after the D-Day operation that portended the end of World War II.

“We know we don’t have much time left, so I tell my story so people know it was because of that generation, because of those guys in this cemetery,” said 99-year-old Steve Melnikoff of Maryland, standing at Colleville-Sur-Mer, where thousands of Americans are buried.

“All these generals with all this brass that don’t mean nothing,” he said. “These guys in the cemetery, they are the heroes.”

Thursday’s anniversary was marked with eloquent speeches, profound silences and passionate pleas for an end to bloodshed.

French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump praised the soldiers, sailors and airmen who took part in the invasion, codenamed Operation Overlord, saying it was the turning point that ended Nazi tyranny and ensured peace for Europe.

“You are the pride of our nation, you are the glory of our republic, and we thank you from the bottom of our heart,” Trump said of the warriors who took part in what he called the ultimate fight of good against evil in World War II.

“They battled not for control and domination, but for liberty, democracy and self-rule,” Trump said in a speech at the Normandy American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach, the bloodiest of five landing beaches.

Macron saluted the courage, generosity and strength of spirit that made them press on “to help men and women they didn’t know, to liberate a land most hadn’t seen before, for no other cause but freedom, democracy.”

He expressed France’s debt to the United States for freeing his country from the Nazis. Macron awarded five American veterans with the Chevalier of Legion of Honor, France’s highest award.

“We know what we owe to you, veterans, our freedom,” he said, switching from French to English. “On behalf of my nation I just want to say ‘thank you.’”

About 160,000 troops were took part in D-Day, and many more fought in the ensuing Battle of Normandy. Of those 73,000 were from the United States, while 83,000 were from Britain and Canada. Troops started landing overnight from the air, then were joined by a massive force by sea on the beaches of Omaha, Utah, Juno, Sword and Gold, carried by 7,000 boats.

“The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you,” Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower had said in his order of the day. “The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to victory.”

On Wednesday, a commemoration was held in Portsmouth, England, the main embarkation point for the transport boats. Then the dignitaries came to the bluffs and beaches of Normandy, where veterans recalled what they saw 75 years ago.

“The water was full of dead men, the beach had burning landing craft,” said Jim Radford, 90, a British D-Day veteran from Hull, describing the scene near Gold Beach, where British landed.

He was there again to watch the unveiling of a statue at Gold Beach, where a memorial to British fighters is to be erected.

At dawn Thursday, hundreds of civilians and military alike from around the world gathered on Omaha Beach.

Dick Jansen, 60, from the Netherlands, drank Canadian whisky from an enamel cup on the water’s edge. Others scattered carnations into the waves. Randall Atanay, the son of a medic who tended to the dying and wounded, waded barefoot into the water, bonding with his dad, who has since died.

Up to 12,000 people attended the ceremony at the Normandy American Cemetery, with U.S. veterans, their numbers fast diminishing as years pass, the guests of honor.

A 21-gun salute thundered into the waters below the cemetery, on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach, and across the rows of white crosses and Stars of David. The final resting places of more than 9,380 of the fallen stretched out before the guests.

Britain’s Prince Charles, his wife, Camilla, and Prime Minister Theresa May attended a remembrance service at the medieval cathedral in Bayeux, the first Normandy town liberated by Allied troops after D-Day.

Hundreds of people packed the seaside square in the town of Arromanches to applaud veterans of the Battle of Normandy that ensued. A wreath was placed outside the town’s D-Day Museum.

Macron thanked soldiers “so that France could become free again” at the Gold Beach ceremony with May and uniformed veterans laid the cornerstone of the memorial that will record the names of thousands of troops under British command who died in Normandy.

“If one day can be said to have determined the fate of generations to come, in France, in Britain, in Europe and the world, that day was the 6th of June, 1944,” May said.

As the sun rose that morning, not one of the thousands of men arriving in Normandy “knew whether they would still be alive when the sun set once again,” she said.

Passing on memories is especially urgent, with hundreds of World War II veterans now dying every day.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hailed those who “took a gamble the world had never seen before.”

Speaking at Juno Beach where 14,000 Canadians came ashore, Trudeau lauded the resulting world order including the United Nations and NATO that have helped preserve peace.

But postwar tensions were evident. Not invited to the remembrance was Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had been present for the 70th commemoration of D-Day.

On Wednesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was a “gift of history” that she was able to participate in the ceremony on Britain’s southern coast. Some 22,000 German soldiers are among those buried around Normandy.

The D-Day invasion was a defining moment of military strategy complicated by unpredictable weather and human chaos in which soldiers from the U.S., Britain, Canada and other Allied nations applied relentless bravery to carve out a beachhead on ground that Nazi Germany had occupied for four years.

The Battle of Normandy hastened Germany’s defeat less than a year later.

Still, that single day cost the lives of 4,414 Allied troops, 2,501 of them Americans. More than 5,000 were injured. On the German side, several thousand were killed or wounded.

From there, Allied troops would advance, take Paris in late summer and race with the Soviet Red Army to control as much German territory as possible by the time Adolf Hitler died in his Berlin bunker and Germany surrendered in May 1945.

The Soviet Union also fought valiantly against the Nazis — and lost more people than any other nation in World War II — but those final battles would divide Europe for decades between the West and the Soviet-controlled East, the face-off line of the Cold War.

“War is the most idiotic thing that man ever created,” said Charles Levesque, 93, who served in the Pacific theater. “Our enemies now are our friends, and our friends are our enemies. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet and Alex Turnbull in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, Milos Krivokapic and Adam Pemble in Ver-sur-Mer contributed. Ganley reported from Paris. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron visit the World War I French-British memorial of Thiepval, France Friday. Ludovic Marin, Pool via Reuters

PARIS - World leaders gathered in Paris will lead global commemorations on Sunday to mark 100 years since the end of World War I at a time of growing nationalism and diplomatic tensions.

Around 70 leaders including US and Russian Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will mark the centenary of the 1918 Armistice in the French capital.

British Prime Minister Theresa May and Queen Elizabeth will attend a separate event in London, while New Zealand and Australia are holding their own ceremonies.

The Paris commemorations, centered on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the Arc de Triomphe, are set to feature warnings about the modern-day danger of nationalism.

"This day is not just about remembering, but should be about a call to action," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Saturday after visiting the forest clearing in eastern France where the Armistice was signed.

Merkel will give the opening address alongside UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at a conference called the Paris Peace Forum which will take place after a memorial service on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday morning.

Conceived by French President Emmanuel Macron, the Forum is intended to highlight the importance of international institutions in helping resolve conflicts, avert wars and spread prosperity.

TENSIONS LURK

But despite the show of unity at the Arc de Triomphe, where school children will read out messages written by soldiers in eight languages, tensions are expected to lurk beneath the surface.

US President Donald Trump, whose hardline nationalism has badly shaken the Western alliance, arrived in Paris on Friday criticizing host Macron for being "insulting."

Trump took umbrage at a recent interview in which Macron talked about the need for a European army and listed the US along with Russia and China as a threat to national security.

The "America First" leader, who faced criticism on Saturday for cancelling a trip to an American cemetery because of the rainy weather, will snub the Paris Peace Forum.



Other attendees of the memorial service and Forum include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Canadian premier Justin Trudeau and Israel's Benyamin Netanyahu, as well as Putin.

With far-right nationalist politicians coming to power from Brazil to Italy to Austria, 40-year-old centrist Macron is set to invoke the war to make the case for international cooperation.

"We want to make these commemorations a time to reflect on the present, not just the past, so that they have a meaning for us today," an aide to Macron said earlier this week.

He will deliver a short speech during Sunday's ceremony, which organizers have made deliberately international and cross-cultural.

The French-born Chinese-American cellist Yo-yo Ma will perform, as will West African singer Angelique Kidjo, and a European youth orchestra with a Russian conductor.

Some 10,000 police have been drafted in to ensure maximum security in a city repeatedly targeted by jihadists since 2015.

Macron is also set to speak later at UN cultural body UNESCO and at the Peace Forum.

The Forum is part of the "fightback" against nationalism worldwide, chief organizer Justin Vaisse told AFP as he played down the significance of Trump's decision not to attend.

"The aim of the forum is to show that there are lots of forces in the international system -- states, NGOs, foundations, intellectuals, companies -- who believe we need a world of rules, an open world and a multilateral world," he said.

OTHER CEREMONIES

About 70 current-day nations were involved in the conflict that had six empires and colonial powers at its heart: Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and the Ottoman Empire.

Around 10 million soldiers are generally estimated to have been killed during the fighting and more than double that number wounded overall.

Between five and 10 million civilians are estimated to have been killed.

In Britain, church bells are set to ring out across the country at 11 am, at the same time as a national remembrance service at the Cenotaph in London.

In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison will address crowds at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra on Sunday morning. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Hundreds of veterans gathered in Normandy for the anniversary

Hundreds of veterans gathered in France to honour the sacrifice of those who died in the D-Day landings, drawing to a close two days of commemorations.

World leaders attended ceremonies honouring Allied forces who fought in the largest combined land, air and naval operation in history.

Wreaths were laid, a minute's silence was held and veterans linked arms and sang, before watching an RAF flypast.

Theresa May and Emmanuel Macron thanked veterans who took part in June 1944.

President Donald Trump called former US soldiers "the pride of the nation".

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption D-Day: Paratroopers land in France to mark 75th anniversary

Throughout the day, key events were marked from the wartime operation at the start of the campaign to liberate Nazi-occupied north-west Europe.

By nightfall on 6 June 1944, some 156,000 Allied troops - including British, US and Canadian forces - had landed on Normandy's beaches, despite challenging weather and fierce German defences.

The Allies established a foothold in France and within 11 months Nazi Germany was defeated and the war in Europe was over.

At 06:26 BST - the exact minute the first British troops landed on the beaches in 1944 - a lone piper played on a section of the Mulberry Harbour in the French town of Arromanches.

Mr Macron and Mrs May - in one of her final engagements as Conservative leader - were in Ver-sur-Mer to see the first stone laid for a memorial to commemorate the 22,442 British troops who died there in the summer of 1944.

The memorial, which overlooks Gold Beach, depicts three soldiers advancing across the sand.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Mrs May and Mr Macron say 'thank you' to D-Day veterans

Mrs May said she was humbled to be able to mark the moment with veterans, who belonged to a "very special generation".

"A generation whose unconquerable spirit shaped the post-war world. They didn't boast. They didn't fuss. They served," she said.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "I don't think I should tell you what I saw because it was so horrible"

"And they laid down their lives so that we might have a better life and build a better world.

"If one day can be said to have determined the fate of generations to come in France, in Britain, in Europe and the world, that day was 6 June, 1944," she added.

Image copyright PA Image caption D-Day veterans made the journey to Normandy to attend commemorations

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption D-Day Royal Navy veteran Ted Emmings, 94, passes a house in Arromanches decorated with a photo of himself and other veterans

Also paying tribute, Mr Macron said: "This is where young men, many of whom had never set foot on French soil, landed at dawn under German fire, risking their lives while fighting their way up the beach, which was littered with obstacles and mines."

The French president also went on to say he was proud to have worked with Mrs May.

"Leaders may come and go but their achievements remain. The force of our friendship will outlast current events," he said.

Image copyright PA Image caption Prince Charles joined the prime minister to mark the anniversary at a ceremony in Bayeux

Mrs May, the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon later attended a service at the cathedral in Bayeux, the first city to be liberated by the invasion.

A message was read out on behalf of Pope Francis, in which he said D-Day was "decisive in the fight against Nazi barbarism". He also paid tribute to those who "joined the Army and gave their lives for freedom and peace".

The service was followed by a ceremony at Bayeux War Cemetery, where many of the fallen are buried.

Image copyright AFP Image caption A British soldier played the bagpipes for the inauguration of a garden in Arromanches

'I wasn't a hero'

Among the veterans who attended the commemorations was Len Fox, who took part in a rendition of We'll Meet Again.

The 94-year-old, who lives in Norwich, landed in the town on D-Day with the 53rd Welsh Division as a dispatch rider.

He said: "Being here for the anniversary is my way of paying back a little to my comrades who didn't make it.

"I wasn't a hero, I was a frightened 19-year-old. They were the brave heroes."

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Veteran Harry Billinge, 93, on his memories of friends who died during the Normandy invasion in 1944

Harry Billinge, 93, from St Austell in Cornwall, was on a final pilgrimage to Normandy to see how thousands of pounds he raised had helped the construction of a national memorial honouring his fallen comrades.

He handed over more than £10,000 to the Normandy Memorial Trust after collecting donations in his local high street and Arromanches.

As an 18-year-old Royal Engineer, he landed on Gold Beach at 06:30 on 6 June 1944 as part of the first wave of troops.

Mr Billinge said this was his "swansong" and he did not think he would return again, but he was eager to see the first foundation stones of the monument laid on Thursday morning.

'Pride of the nation'

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Donald Trump praised troops at a service in the US war cemetery at Omaha Beach

Meanwhile, Mr Trump accompanied Mr Macron at a ceremony at the US war cemetery at Omaha Beach, Colleville-sur-Mer.

He told veterans gathered there: "You are among the greatest Americans who will ever live. You are the pride of the nation. You are the glory of our republic and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts."

Image copyright EPA Image caption Donald Trump and the First Lady, Melania, joined Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, for D-Day commemorations in Normandy

Image copyright Reuters Image caption The US president greeted D-Day veterans

Other events in the UK and France included:

A veteran's parade in Arromanches, followed by a Red Arrows flypast

A service of remembrance and wreath laying at the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire

In Portsmouth, a veteran's parade before a memorial service at the city's D-Day Stone

The Duke of Sussex joined the Chelsea Pensioners and six D-Day veterans for Founder's Day at London's Royal Hospital Chelsea

In Edinburgh, 15 D-Day veterans were presented with the Knight of the Légion d'Honneur Cross at the French Consulate

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Prince William was among those at a service at the National Memorial Arboretum

At the National Memorial Arboretum, the Duke of Cambridge gave an address which was originally made by his great-grandfather, George VI in 1944.

He read: "Four years ago our nation and empire stood alone against an overwhelming enemy, with our backs to the wall.

"Now, once more, a supreme test has to be faced."

He added: "This time, the challenge is not to fight to survive but to fight to win the final victory for the good cause.

"At this historic moment, surely not one of us is too busy, too young, or too old to play a part in a nationwide, perchance a world-wide, vigil of prayer as the great crusade sets forth."

During Prince Harry's visit to Royal Hospital Chelsea, he joked with Chelsea Pensioners and asked them "Who's your favourite?" while gesturing to hospital staff.

Image copyright Getty Images

On Wednesday, leaders from every country that fought alongside the UK on D-Day joined the Queen in Portsmouth for the first day of the 75th anniversary events.

The Queen paid tribute to the "heroism, courage and sacrifice" of those who died.

Around 300 veterans were then waved off on the cruise ship MV Boudicca as it headed to the Normandy commemorations.

Two veterans - Harry Read, 95, and John Hutton, 94 - parachuted back into Normandy, 75 years after their first landing, accompanied by members of the Army's Parachute Regiment display team. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to commemorate their countries' shared sacrifice in the First World War on Friday and discuss the future of their post-Brexit relationship.

The commemoration, just ahead of the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI, will be held at the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, in northern France, near the Belgian border.

The memorial commemorates 72,337 missing British and South African servicemen who died between 1915 and 1918 in a series of battles along the Somme river and who have no known grave.

May was to start the day with a visit to St Symphorien Military Cemetery in Mons, in Belgium, where she and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel were to lay a wreath at the graves of the first and last soldiers killed on the Western Front.

"A century ago British forces fought side by side with our allies in Europe on the Western Front. Today in France and Belgium we reflect on our shared history, but also look ahead to our shared future, built on peace, prosperity and friendship," May said in a statement.

Following a reception with British and Belgian serving armed forces in Mons, May will travel to France where she will meet Macron in Albert, a town in the heart of the Somme region which suffered significant bombardment during the First World War.

The leaders will hold a working lunch, where Brexit is expected to be top of the agenda, before laying a wreath at the Thiepval Memorial.

The wreath, made for the occasion, will combine poppies and le bleuet, the two national emblems of remembrance for Britain and France.

France has taken a hard line in Brexit negotiations, with President Emmanuel Macron insistent that Britain should not be allowed to negotiate advantages for itself as it withdraws from the European Union.

Negotiators have been racing the clock to try to agree the outlines of an agreement to settle Britain's exit that could be approved at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels this month.

But hopes of meeting that deadline are fading.

Britain's foreign minister played down the prospect of an imminent deal on Thursday and called for greater efforts to be made in the negotiations to "understand the other's perspective."

On Saturday, May is to attend the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

On Remembrance Sunday, she will lay a wreath at the Cenotaph in London and attend the national service to mark the Centenary of the Armistice at Westminster Abbey. </s> The world will turn its eyes Thursday to the beaches of Normandy, France, paying tribute to the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and the few surviving veterans of that battle that changed the course of World War II.

For President Donald Trump, it is another moment to praise alliances and military service, on the heels of defending his decision not to serve in Vietnam. World leaders will gather in heartfelt tribute to alliance and sacrifice and a unified vow for enduring unity, outweighing any national or political skirmish of the moment.

Trump is expected to give a speech while touring the beaches and an American military cemetery in France. He stuck to the script Wednesday in the first of two days of D-Day tributes at a moving ceremony in Portsmouth, England, from which the 1944 invasion was launched.

Trump did his part with a 90-second recitation of some of the prayer that President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered to a worried nation just getting word of the fighting. The president, with images of an American flag and Roosevelt projected behind him, read to the 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."

The president sat in a VIP area between Queen Elizabeth II and first lady Melania Trump. Some 300 World War II veterans also attended the seaside ceremony. Trump joined in giving a standing ovation to a group of vets who appeared on stage as the commemoration began.

The queen provided the keynote address in unusually personal terms.

"When I attended the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings, some thought it might be the last such event. But the wartime generation, my generation, is resilient, and I am delighted to be with you in Portsmouth today," she said.

After the event, Trump visited with American World War II veterans who were among Allied troops on D-Day. But the ceremony came just hours after the broadcast of an interview in which he said he had no regrets about not serving in Vietnam because he "was not a fan of that war."

In the interview with Piers Morgan that aired Tuesday, Trump was asked if he wished he had served in Vietnam. "Well, I was never a fan of that war, I'll be honest with you. I thought it was a terrible war," Trump said. "I thought it was very far away."

Trump received a series of deferments to avoid serving in Vietnam, including one attained with a physician's letter stating that he suffered from bone spurs in his feet.

Trump spent Wednesday night at his golf course on Ireland's west coast.

He wanted to host the Irish prime minister there, while the government countered with the grand staging of an ancient castle. In the end, neither side got what they wanted. The compromise location for Trump's meeting Wednesday with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar was the VIP lounge at Shannon Airport, just down the hallway from the food court and duty-free shop.

And the meeting itself was more than just a warm handshake for the cameras, as the two broke sharply on what would be best for Ireland if the United Kingdom were to leave the European Union.

Varadkar has become a vociferous opponent of Brexit, a move Trump supports. Many in Ireland express worry that if the U.K. does leave, a "hard border" will return between Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K, potentially reigniting sectarian tension that lasted for decades and sometimes exploded into violence.

"Probably you'll ask me about Brexit because I just left some very good people who are very involved with Brexit, as you know," Trump said in the leaders' meeting. "And I think it will all work out very well, and also for you with your wall, your border."

Varadkar quickly retorted, "I think one thing we want to avoid, of course, is a wall or border between us." </s> PARIS (AP) — Traveling from across the world to battlefields where their soldiers fell 100 years ago, victors and vanquished alike marked those sacrifices ahead of Sunday’s Armistice Day and assessed alliances that have been dramatically redrawn since those dark days.

A century ago, the entry of U.S. troops into World War I tipped the momentum toward its allies, including France and Britain. On Saturday, even as he began two days of remembrance of the 1914-18 war, U.S. President Donald Trump said his nation bears far too much of the burden to defend the West.

A flurry of Armistice-related diplomacy once again turned Paris, the jewel that Germany sought to take in 1914 but which the Allies fought to defend, into the center of global attention Saturday, with dozens of world leaders arriving for solemn commemorations planned Sunday.

After an awkward meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump cancelled a visit to the defining battleground of Belleau Wood because of bad weather. Macron set off to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

No separate meeting between Trump and Merkel was planned. Instead, Merkel was marking how her nation’s bloodstained history with France has become a close alliance that is now the driving force behind the European Union. She and Macron were to visit the site where the armistice was signed in a railway carriage in Compiegne, north of Paris.

In four years of fighting, remembered for brutal trench warfare and the first use of gas, France, the British empire, Russia and the United States had the main armies opposing a German-led coalition that also included the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires.

Yet, despite a war that was supposed to end all wars, World War II pitted both sides against each other once again.

Across the line that once marked the Western Front, leaders lauded the courage of soldiers who were killed during the unprecedented slaughter, before converging on Paris for a dinner.

The armistice entered into force on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, and on Sunday 69 world leaders will mark the centennial of the event at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, underneath the Arc de Triomphe in central Paris.

At dawn Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went to Vimy Ridge, the battlefield in northern France where Canada found its sense of self when it defeated German opposition against the odds.

Standing amid the white headstones against an ashen sky, Trudeau addressed the fallen, saying what Canada has achieved in the past century has been “a history built on your sacrifice. You stand for the values on which Canada was built.”

In southern Belgium’s Mons, Canadians were also lauding George Price, the last Commonwealth soldier to die in the war when he was shot by a German sniper two minutes before the armistice took effect.

Trump was looking beyond the tragedy of death and destruction, asking in a tweet: “Is there anything better to celebrate than the end of a war, in particular that one, which was one of the bloodiest and worst of all time?”

After his meeting with Macron, Trump had been scheduled to head to the battlefield of Belleau Wood, 90 kilometers (55 miles) northeast of the capital, where U.S. troops had their breakthrough battle by stopping a German push for Paris shortly after entering the war in 1917.

The battle of Belleau Wood proved America’s mettle to allies and foes alike, and by the time the war ended U.S. forces were at least an equal to any of the other major armies, which were exhausted and depleted.

However, Trump canceled his visit because of bad weather.

For more information on World War I, go to The Associated Press' WWI hub.
President of France Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Theresa May, Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau and President of the United States Donald Trump mark the 75th Anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, France, paying tribute to Allied World War II veterans.