At a ceremony outside the Czech radio building where major clashes took place 57 years ago, President Petr Pavel warned against the history of distortions, saying reminiscing past events would help honor those who fought for freedom.
Prime Minister Petr Fiara, Senate Speaker Milos Vyselchil, and other senior officials laid out wreaths while funeral music was being played.
Viselchil said 1968 should serve as a reminder that those who place power in front of the country should not be led. Invasions by Soviet, Bulgaria, Hungarian and Polish troops put an end to reform efforts and began periods of censorship, political purity and limited freedom.