Noting with appreciation the Agenda for War-Affected Children adopted by the International Conference on War-Affected Children, held in Winnipeg, Canada, in September 2000, and efforts by regional organizations to include prominently the rights and protection of children affected by armed conflict in their policies and programmes, 38. Reaffirms the essential role of the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and the Commission on Human Rights for the promotion and protection of the rights and welfare of children, including children in armed conflict, and takes note of the importance of the debates held by the Security Council on children and armed conflict, of Council resolutions 1379 (2001) of 20 November 2001 and 1460 (2003) of 30 January 2003 and of the undertaking by the Council to give special attention to the protection, welfare and rights of children in armed conflict when taking action aimed at maintaining peace and security, including provisions for the protection of children in the mandates of peacekeeping operations, as well as the inclusion of child protection advisers in these operations; 39. Stresses the continuing importance of the Plan of Action on Children Affected by Armed Conflict of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and the resolution on this subject adopted at the twenty-seventh International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent; 40. Takes note of the entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (A/CONF.183/9) and notes in particular the inclusion therein, as a war crime, of conscripting or enlisting children under the age of 15 years or using them to participate actively in hostilities in both international and non-international armed conflicts; 41. Calls upon States: (a) To end the recruitment of children and their use in armed conflicts contrary to international law, including obligations assumed under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict and the Convention concerning the prohibition and immediate action for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour (No. 182) of the International Labour Organization; (b) When ratifying the Optional Protocol, to raise the minimum age for voluntary recruitment of persons into their national armed forces from that set out in article 38, paragraph 3, of the Convention, bearing in mind that under the Convention persons under 18 years of age are entitled to special protection, and to adopt safeguards to ensure that such recruitment is not forced or coerced; (c) To ensure that children are not forcibly or compulsorily recruited into their armed forces and, where voluntary recruitment to the national armed forces under the age of 18 years is permitted, to ensure compliance with the safeguards under article 3, paragraph 3, of the Optional Protocol; (d) To take all feasible measures to prevent recruitment and use of children by armed groups, as distinct from the armed forces of a State, including the adoption of legal measures necessary to prohibit and criminalize such practices; page 12