Marking the 82nd anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy, Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD), on Saturday honoured the memory of members of Czechoslovak and Allied troops who served there during World War II. Together with the mayor of the French city of Dunquerke, Patrice Vergriete, Fico paid tribute to the Czechoslovak Armoured Brigade that operated in Dunquerke during the war.
Fico stated that the Slovak Republic respects and acknowledges the historical fact that Slovakia was liberated primarily by soldiers of the Red Army and the Romanian army. "Tens of thousands of soldiers died while liberating our villages and towns," he said, adding that there was war in other parts of the world as well.
The premier added that the contribution to the end of the war made by the opening of the second front in 1944 should not be forgotten, either. "This year I decided to come to Dunquerke, France, as this place was known not only at the beginning of WWII, when a huge military operation took place and nearly 400,000 British, Canadian and French soldiers were evacuated from Dunquerke to Britain, but also for the Czechoslovak soldiers who distinguished themselves here at the end of WWII," stressed Fico.
The task of the Czechoslovak Armoured Brigade was to contain the German garrison in the occupied area, from October 1944 until 9 May 1945, when the German forces surrendered. The premier also thanked the mayor for his long-term care of the monument to the Czechoslovak soldiers.
A total of 167 Czechoslovak soldiers were killed in this operation. I feel the need to pay tribute to these soldiers, who also helped end the war. We will continue this way next year as well. We won't obscure historical truth, and I believe this is the best way to remind the Slovak public of the horrors of WWII and the contribution of Slovaks to the end of this terrible suffering," said Fico in the end.
Source: TASR
