Operation Danube was the cover name for the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact armies in August 1968. The fleet of Polish tanks which arrive to liberate their neighbour, ostensibly threatened by a counter-revolution, includes the old tank nicknamed “Ladybird”, which is the last to leave the barracks. It gets hopelessly lost and conks out at daybreak in a small Czech border town in the middle of nowhere. Its inhabitants are quick to show their antipathy towards the occupiers. However, when both sides realise they are essentially victims of the situation and that they are capable of reaching a gentlemen’s agreement, all kinds of relationships begin to blossom.