Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaking at the memorial overlooking Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, commemorated the 82nd anniversary of the June 6, 1944, D-Day Allied invasion during World War II. The two military leaders reminded attendees of the sacrifice made by the soldiers who perished during the operation and the values of democracy and freedom they defended by giving up their lives. Secretary Hegseth said that "today different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies" and called on European leaders to "do something about that invasion." Other U.S. officials, including Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Tim Sheehy (R-NE), laid wreaths at the end of the ceremony.