Right, the message conveyed is that the German troops somehow weren't responsible for their leaders' actions. They were "victims, too," in other words.
If Germany and France had sided with America during the buildup to the American invasion of Iraq, I would view this whole thing very differently. However, it seems that Germany's current leadership in particular hasn't learned how to stand tall for the world order established after its defeat. That is what America is doing in Iraq.
Even Japan has learned more than Chirac has about defending the freedoms its people gained after America defeated Hirohito's forces. This D-day we can celebrate the joint deployment of Japanese and American forces for the first time. That is a true measure of victory, not some hollow German apology. Let's hope that the German people demand better of their leaders in the future. The war on terror is only going to get more difficult in the years to come. It'll be even harder for the faint of heart to accept. When Germany and France both join us in crushing terrorism and opposing Chinese military ambitions, then we will welcome their efforts to let bygones be bygones in future D-day rememberances.
But all the ensuing dialog over this "gesture" is sure to have a positive impact.
Another interesting thought to ponder would be the lack of ambivalence expressed toward the fate of who emerged from Operation Iraqi Freedom the ultimate victor.
The French foreign minister, Dominique de Villepin, made it quite clear which horse France was backing during the battle between Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party and the United States military.
Of course the German troops were not responsible for their leaders crimes. Nobody would call Rommel a war criminal, because he wasn´t. But he too was so controlled by the Nazis, that he had nothing to decide. Soldiers in Germany were not even allowed to vote in the Weimar Republic, they were merely receiving orders. It was not the duty to refuse orders if they mean a crime, unlike today. And what would you say about the men who drafted men with the age of 17,18,19, 20 who died then - and have never had the chance to express their opposition against the regime? I say these boys were victims of Hitler, mislead in a war "to defend the fatherland", but actually it was vice versa. I´m sure noone had picked up the gun against the Brits, Americans, French, Canadians if 1. they had known what Hitler did in the East, 2. not a Nazi official had threatened to shoot them if they did not and 3. had known that after Hitlers defeat both sides realized that the enemy is in the East.