National Defence committee  I wasn't able to hear question period today. Ukraine has been described as a close neighbour or as the easternmost province, and Canada as an oblast of Ukraine. I think our people-to-people ties are incredibly close, as committee members around the table know. I think that's a mischaracterization of the relationship in terms of the people and the history of our cultural, economic and now military co-operation.

National Defence committee  Certainly, as we hear that we're entering the second winter of a trench warfare situation, the brave men and women of the Ukrainian armed forces are literally freezing in the trenches in what is one of the most heavily land-mined countries in the world—among the top five now. This is all part of what Ukraine needs to win, which is the combination of financial and military support, equipment and training.

National Defence committee  I still have my voice left, a little bit. Thank you for the invitation. I apologize for not being there in person today. The last time Orest and I were there was in April, some eight months ago. At that time, we had just finished marking the first anniversary of Russia's full-scale genocidal war against Ukraine.