More on Bush's visit to the Netherlands

Via the AP, we hear about Bush's visit to the Netherlands yesterday to honor Americans who died in the "fight against tyranny":

As a chilly rain soaked thousands of white crosses marking American war dead, President Bush paid homage Sunday to the "terrible price" paid by World War II soldiers who never came home from their fight against tyranny.

"On this peaceful May morning, we commemorate a great victory for liberty," Bush said at Europe's third-largest cemetery for American veterans near here in Margraten. "We come to this ground to remember the cost for which these soldiers fought and triumphed."

I asked Dutch Kossack Frank to translate part of an article on Bush's visit from the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant.  The article gives more details about Bush's speech:

The American president Bush left the Netherlands on Sunday afternoon. He had been visiting since Saturday night to be present at the commemoration of WWII at the American military cemetary of Margraten. Bush is en route to his next destination in his tour through Europe, Moscow.

President Bush and Queen Beatrix lay a wreath on Sunday morning at the military cemetary at Margraten. It was part of the official ceremony. Also present were prime minister Balkenende, members of the Dutch government en about 10,000 invited guests.

In his speech at Margraten, Bush said Sunday that the most important lesson of World War II is that 'no power is as strong as the power of freedom. There's no soldier as strong as one who fights for freedom'.

In his speech, Bush thanked the soldiers who gave their lives in the battle against the tyranny of Nazi Germany, but also the Dutch families who adopted the graves of the American soldiers in the fall of 1945 at the Margraten cemetary, and who provided twenty trucks full of flowers for this day.

According to Bush, the free Europe after World War II was built on the courage and sacrifices of the soldiers who liberated the continent. The free world that Bush wants to leave as his legacy has been inspired by that. "We are at the service of the truth: freedom is the most important." In the 21st century, according to Bush, Americans and Europeans work together to bring freedom to Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon and the Middle East. "Freedom is the permanent hope of humanity", said Bush.

(Emphasis mine)

Obviously, Bush likes to equate his War on Terror™ in Iraq with the liberation of Europe from the Nazis.

You might recall that the Netherlands was part of Bush's "Coalition of the Willing" in Iraq.  This is one reason why Harry Potter the Dutch Prime Minister isn't terribly popular;  a Dutch poll reflects this (see the "lapdog" part).  At least Balkenende pulled the Dutch troops out of Iraq in March 2005.

On a related topic, Kossack Daily Joe and friends gave Bush a loving tribute yesterday in Amsterdam.  Read all about it in his diary "Thousands turn out for StopBush protest in Amsterdam".  Kossack dearkitty also posted a diary on the protests.