Honourable senators, on behalf of the Independent Senators Group, I want to pay tribute to the late Marc Garneau, who passed away on June 4, 2025. Most of us remember Mr. Garneau as a high flyer, literally and figuratively. He held positions where he was unavoidably in the limelight, most notably as an astronaut and a politician. He wore his fame lightly, almost bashfully, but he also understood the power of name recognition to motivate people and to effect positive change.

Mr. Garneau also knew how to fly under the radar, so to speak. He was our Minister of Foreign Affairs for only a short time, from January to October 2021, and I know he was disappointed about not having the opportunity to do more with that portfolio, which he was genuinely passionate about. He accomplished more in that short time than many people give him credit for, not least securing the release of the two Michaels from their nearly three‑year detention in China. He did it through patient and pragmatic diplomacy and with special care and empathy for the families of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.

You might have thought that working for the release of the two Michaels would have turned Mr. Garneau into a China hawk, but he was a foreign policy pragmatist who advocated for what he termed the “four Cs” approach to Canada-China relations, namely, to coexist, to compete, to co-operate and to challenge as circumstances require. Given the state of the world today, a four Cs approach would seem appropriate not only for our relationship with China but for a host of other major powers.

After Mr. Garneau returned to the back benches of the other place, I recruited him to join a group of parliamentarians on two visits to South Korea to discuss peace and security in the Korean Peninsula. He was in many ways our calling card for visits with top officials across the Korean government and academia.

In advance of a meeting with Ban-Ki moon, the Canadian delegation was agog at the prospect of meeting the former UN Secretary-General, but it turned out that Mr. Ban was just as excited about meeting Mr. Garneau. Following those visits, Mr. Garneau quickly became a career hand and two years ago became co-chair of the Canada-Korea Forum, which is a high‑level Track 2 forum for Canadian and Korean leaders to exchange views on bilateral issues. Mr. Garneau hosted the 2024 meeting in Montreal and was especially proud of bringing the forum to his home city for the first time.

Mr. Garneau lived a life with his head beyond the clouds and his feet firmly on the ground. That, honourable senators, is why he was a giant among Canadians and why we will miss him so much. I send condolences to his family on behalf of the Independent Senators Group.