U.S. President George Bush has joined other world leaders in honoring
military veterans while marking the 90th anniversary of the end of
World War One.
Mr. Bush recounted war stories of several American veterans during a speech on
Tuesday on the deck of the USS Intrepid, a decommissioned aircraft carrier in New
York. The president later attended a re-dedication ceremony for the
carrier, which is now a military and space museum.
Mr. Bush, marking his last Veterans Day as commander-in-chief, said he
will miss being the head of such a "fabulous" group of men and women
who wear the uniform of the U.S. military.
Elsewhere, U.S. President-elect Barack Obama honored the nation's veterans at a wreath-laying ceremony in (the midwestern U.S. city of) Chicago. He called (in a statement) for the country to rededicate itself to keep a sacred trust with all who have served.
In London, three of the last surviving British World War One veterans (--all of them over 100 years old--) led a ceremony to commemorate the moment in 1918 when the armistice treaty was signed.
The treaty brought an end to the so-called "war to end all wars" on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.
The observance is known in Europe and elsewhere as Remembrance Day or Armistice Day, and Veteran's Day in the United States.