There’s one world leader who won’t be at D-Day commemorations

Parachutes flapped open in midair over France this week as US paratroopers leaped out of World War II-era military planes, launching the start of solemn commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day, a week that will bring dozens of world leaders, including President Joe Biden, for events that will be rich in symbolism and resonant with current times.

For decades, the United States, its allies and others have come together to remember the June 6, 1944, US-led landing in Normandy, the largest seaborne invasion in history and the pivotal final stage of the Allied push to defeat Nazi Germany’s devastating, genocidal campaign of conquest.