Hegseth criticises European migration policy in Normandy D-Day speech
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has used a D-Day anniversary speech in Normandy to criticise European migration policy, describing migrant arrivals on European beaches as an "invasion". He made the remarks in France on the 82nd anniversary of the Allied landings that helped liberate Nazi-occupied north-western Europe in 1944. The comments were delivered during commemorations in a setting closely associated with wartime sacrifice and transatlantic military cooperation.
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Hegseth said that "different dangerous ideologies" were now storming "different European beaches", naming Spain, Italy, Greece and Bulgaria. He asked when European capitals would do something about what he called an "invasion", referring to boats and men arriving on shores. He also said some European capitals had become too "comfortable" with their hard-fought freedoms and had forgotten that "freedom is not free".
The speech comes as migration remains a major political issue across Europe, with parties supporting hardline immigration policies gaining ground in some countries. It also extends criticism of European migration policy from senior figures in the Trump administration. On Friday, US Vice-President JD Vance blamed the death of an 18-year-old British student in Southampton on a "mass invasion of migrants", prompting criticism from Downing Street.
The remarks are significant because they were made during a D-Day anniversary event in Normandy, where Allied forces landed on five beaches in northern France in the largest seaborne military operation ever attempted. Hegseth linked the wartime legacy directly to present-day political debates, saying the men who fought and died there restored freedom to Europe and that the current generation of leaders and war fighters must maintain it. His comments place migration policy within a broader argument about national security, sovereignty and the defence of democratic freedoms.
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The speech also fits into a wider pattern of transatlantic tension over migration and political language. US President Donald Trump has previously criticised European immigration policy, telling the United Nations last year that European countries were "going to hell" because of "uncontrolled migration". In response, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said those remarks were "not right", while also acknowledging the challenge of tackling illegal migration, particularly small boat crossings in the English Channel.
What remains unclear is whether Hegseth's comments will prompt any formal response from European governments or alter the tone of US-European discussions on migration. It is also not clear whether the remarks were coordinated with the commemorative setting or were intended as a broader policy intervention. The immediate issue to watch is whether the speech adds to existing political pressure on European leaders as migration continues to shape domestic debate across the continent.
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