US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth criticized European nations for allowing what he termed an 'invasion' on their shores during a D-Day anniversary speech in Normandy, France.

Speaking 82 years after Allied forces stormed the beaches to liberate Nazi-occupied Europe, Hegseth said: 'Sadly, today, different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies.' He specifically mentioned beaches in Spain, Italy, Greece, and Bulgaria, asking: 'When will European capitals do something about that invasion?'

Migration has become a major political issue across Europe, with parties supporting hardline immigration policies surging in polls. The Trump administration sees an immigration crackdown as a key part of its domestic policy agenda, requesting billions more in funding for enforcement agencies.

Hegseth's comments mark a further criticism of European migration policy by senior members of the Trump administration. On Friday, US Vice-President JD Vance blamed the death of British student Henry Nowak on the 'mass invasion of migrants,' prompting Downing Street to criticize 'people trying to interfere in our democracy.'

Hegseth argued that some European capitals have grown too 'comfortable' with their hard-fought freedoms, forgetting that 'freedom is not free.' He stressed that the freedom restored by D-Day must be maintained by the current generation.

The Trump administration's National Security Strategy, released in December, asserted that if current trends continue, Europe would be 'unrecognisable in 20 years or less' and that economic issues are 'eclipsed by the real and more stark prospect of civilisational erasure.'

Domestically, the Trump administration has made anti-immigration policy a key tenet, with ICE agents making thousands of arrests since January 2025.

Source: www.bbc.com