The Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union (Minneapolis,1998),

that, in fulfilling their duties, humanitarian personnel are frequently exposed to a high degree of risk,

about the increasing number of tragic incidents of injury or loss of life involving humanitarian personnel in the field,

a) the provisions of Nos. 9, 17 and 191 of the Constitution of the International Telecommunication Union which state, respectively, that the Union is to promote, at the international level, the adoption of a broader approach to the issues of telecommunications in the global information economy and society by cooperating with other organizations; that the Union shall in particular promote the adoption of measures for ensuring the safety of life through the cooperation of telecommunication services; and that international telecommunication services must give absolute priority to all telecommunications concerning safety of life;

b) the Tampere Convention on the Provision of Telecommunication Resources for Disaster Mitigation and Relief Operations which recalls the essential role of telecommunication resources in facilitating the safety of humanitarian relief and assistance personnel;

c) the Convention on the Safety and Security of United Nations and Associated Personnel, adopted by the 49th session of the United Nations General Assembly, laying down principles and duties to ensure the safety and security of United Nations and associated personnel,

that the unhindered use of telecommunication equipment and services can greatly improve the safety and security of humanitarian personnel in the field,

a) Resolution 644 of the World Radiocommunication Conference (Geneva, 1997) which recognizes the vital role of telecommunications for the safety and security of relief workers in the field;

b) Resolution 19 of the World Telecommunication Development Conference (Valletta, 1998) which recognizes the vital role of telecommunications for the safety and security of relief workers in the field,

to ensure the full application of telecommunication technology and services for the safety and security of humanitarian personnel,

resolves to instruct the Secretary-General

to study the possibilities for increased use of telecommunications for the safety and security of humanitarian personnel in the field and to report to the Council at its 1999 session,

to address the issue of the use of telecommunications for the safety and security of humanitarian personnel in the field and to take appropriate actions to improve that use,

to ensure that humanitarian personnel have unhindered and uninterrupted use of telecommunication resources required for their safety and security in accordance with the national rules and regulations of the States concerned.