The Council of Delegates,

alarmed by the increasing number of vulnerable people continuously suffering from or threatened by man-made and natural disasters all over the world,

committed to the Movement's Fundamental Principles, which include humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence, that enable it to act on behalf of the victims and vulnerable people and to advocate their cause,

emphasizing that it is necessary, in the interest of all those whom the Movement seeks to assist and protect, to strengthen the unique relationship between the Movement and the States party to the Geneva Conventions, which finds one concrete expression in the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent,

stressing that the International Conference is a forum for dialogue on humanitarian matters whose effectiveness for victims and vulnerable people depends on the participation of all those concerned with humanitarian issues, and that the 26th International Conference was convened in conformity with the Statutes of the Movement,

concerned to avoid a situation in which issues of a political nature may disrupt the International Conference or divide the Movement,

1. reaffirms its commitment to holding the 26th International Conference in 1995;

2. appeals to all participants in the International Conference, in the interest of all victims and vulnerable people, to safeguard its exclusively humanitarian character, in particular by respecting the Fundamental Principles during the Conference, in conformity with the Statutes of the Movement;

3. requests all National Societies to convey this appeal to their respective governments at their earliest convenience;

4. confirms the commitment of all components of the Movement to act in conformity with the Fundamental Principles throughout the International Conference in order to preserve the unity of the Movement.