VE Day, Trump distances US from Europe alliance

The 8th anniversary last Thursday of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany (VE Day) was celebrated royally in Britain with marching bands and colour-coded regiments, a service in Westminster Cathedral, an air force fly-past, and wreath laying by King Charles and Queen Camilla. Ceremonies were held at war memorials in cities, towns, and villages in France, where VE day is a public holiday.

In Paris, President Emmanuel Macron laid a wreath at a statue of Charles de Gaulle, who led French forces during the war. Macron then walked to the Arc de Triomphe to tend the eternal flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and inspect waiting troops.

The French Defence Ministry said, “The 80th anniversary of the victory of 8 May 1945 implies, more than ever, a double responsibility to the last surviving witnesses of the war, and to the younger generation.”

In Germany, where VE day is commemorated as a day of liberation from the Nazis, Chancellor Friedrich Merz presided over a wreath-laying ceremony in Berlin and parliament held a remembrance service. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier extended “profound thanks” to the Allied soldiers and the European resistance organisations for defeating the Nazis. While praising the Soviet Union for its role in World War II, he castigated Russia for invading Ukraine.

Russia marked the day on Friday with a military parade in Red Square in Moscow. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin stood to attention in the reviewing stand while 11,000 soldiers marched past, some in the uniforms worn by Russian troops during World War II.

Putin had called for a three-day ceasefire in the Ukraine war in order to guarantee security for those attending or participating in the events. Among the guests were China’s Xi Jinping, Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, the only European Union figure to attend during a bloc boycott over the war with Ukraine.

Born in shattered St. Petersburg in 1952, Putin grew up in the shadow of the war. His elder bother Viktor, born in 1940, died of diphtheria and starvation in 1942 during the siege of the city by Nazi Germany’s forces. The Soviet Union suffered the most military and civilian deaths of all the countries involved. Between 8,800,000-10,700 soldiers were killed while between 5,200,000 and-13,300,000 civilians were slain. The Soviet Union repulsed German offensives in the battles of St. Petersburg (then known as Stalingrad) and Kursk, which marked a turning point for the Allies in the course of the war. Poland honoured the anniversary in step with Russia. Another 20 countries commemorated the anniversary as liberation or victory day.

Having sat on the fence until December 7th, 1941, when Germany’s ally Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, the US did not mark VE day. Two million US troops fought in Europe, and 250,000 died in this theatre of war. US General Dwight Eisenhower commanded the Normandy landings on June 6th, 1944, that led to the defeat of Germany.

Another 14 million US servicemen and women served in the war against Japan which ended on September 2nd,1945, VJ Day.

All too clearly determined to ignore VE Day, Donald Trump has reverted to pre-World War II isolationism by distancing the US from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) which was founded in 1949 by the US, Canada, and Western European states to provide collective security against the Soviet Union. During his first term in office (2017-2021) Trump demanded that European NATO allies increase defence spending, claiming the US was bearing the burden alone.

In April this year, at the beginning of his second term, Trump challenged the viability of NATO and suggested that he could be unwilling to support NATO if a member was attacked. He again raised the issue of defence spending: “If they don’t pay, I’m not going to defend them. No, I’m not going to defend them.” Around 100,000 US military personnel are based in Europe, most in Germany, Italy, and Britain.

Trump has appeared to be soft on Russia over its war against Ukraine, which has created concern in European countries that they could be left without US aid to defend themselves.

VE day coincided with the election of a US-born Roman Catholic Pope, Cardinal Robert Prevost, who took the name of Leo XIV as head of the world’s 1.4 billion faithful. As the only US citizen to reach the papacy, Pope Leo was congratulated by Trump although the Pope espouses policies opposed to those adopted by the Trump administration.

Pope Leo was born on 1955 in Chicago. After finishing the first stage of his university education, he joined the order of St. Augustine and continued his education until he was sent as a missionary in Peru where he was appointed a bishop and eventually a cardinal before being called back to Rome by the late Pope Francis. Pope Leo shares Francis’ views on migrants, the poor and the environment. On climate change he has called for action rather than words. He has also taken aim at Trump.

In 2015, Leo co-authored an article with Cardinal Timothy Dolan criticising then-candidate Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric and policies. In February 2025, Leo spoke out against US Vice President JD Vance who said fellow citizens should love each other before caring for immigrants.

Meanwhile, Trump’s ratings appear to have stabilised with 52 per cent of US adults disapproving and 42 per cent approving of his actions. This follows March ratings covering his first 100 days in office. These polls gave him a 39 per cent approval rating while 55 per cent disapproved.

A whopping 72 per cent said his economic policies were likely to cause a recession. His was the lowest approval rating of any president in 80 years. These contrasts dramatically with the February favourability rating of 78 per cent for the late Pope Francis given by US Catholics in a poll conducted by Pew Research. He mentored and promoted Pope Leo who has signalled he will follow his predecessors’ policies.