Honourable senators, on April 9, 2017, I had the privilege and the honour of being invited along with our Speaker, Senator Furey, and Senator White to attend the ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

As the chair of the Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs, I would like to acknowledge the sacrifice that our troops and their families have made for us. I wish to sincerely thank all veterans for their service to Canadians.

I also want to thank Elder Annie Smith St-Georges for the opening prayer and the smudging ceremony, as well as the Ottawa Chorale Society and all the artists for their touching performances, which helped make the ceremony memorable for all Canadians.

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During the ceremony, I was deeply moved and proud to stand next to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which holds the body of an unidentified Canadian soldier from the First World War. It deserves our attention and respect.

Two years ago, I visited Vimy Ridge with my grandson, Ayaan. He was amazed at what our soldiers accomplished, and so am I.

The commemorative ceremony will be forever etched on my memory. Etched on my memory because of the sacrifices made at Vimy to give me my freedom. Etched on my memory because war is destructive and we will never forget the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice. All of this is etched on my memory so that you and I, as politicians, work harder to prevent war because it demands the ultimate sacrifice from our men and women and their families. We must never ask anyone to make that sacrifice except as a last resort.

Today I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who has served in the Canadian Armed Forces. I thank them for paying such a terrible price to protect our world. We will always remember your ultimate sacrifice. We will never forget you.