As officials from 192 countries gathered in Geneva this week for the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly, Chien-Jen Chen, Taiwan's minister of health, was left knocking on the door.

Taiwan is not recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) — its access to WHO people and programmes is at the discretion of China. But Chen's government wants to be given ‘observer’ status, arguing that its scientists are currently being shut out of global investigations into severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and other diseases (see Nature 422, 652; 200310.1038/422652a).

In the event, Taiwan's bid did not get very far. The assembly's general committee decided not to put it on the agenda. The country's eighth unsuccessful bid was rejected after what one WHO official describes as “lengthy discussions”, adding that Taiwan did secure strong US and Japanese backing for the first time.

China does not recognize the government of Taiwan. The United Nations, which admitted China in 1972, also does not consider Taiwan a state, which prevents Taiwan from becoming a full member of WHO. But the World Health Assembly, which serves as WHO's main decision-making body, could grant Taiwan observer status, if it so wished.

Chen says that the bid “tried to avoid one-China politics”, and describes it as Taiwan's “humble request to help realize health for all”. But in a report by China's official Xinhua news agency on Monday, Gao Qiang, the Chinese vice-minister of health, claims Taiwan “has no difficulties in getting information from WHO and carrying out technical exchanges with it”. Taiwan's true purpose, Qiang is quoted as saying, is to “politicize the health issue and to internationalize the Taiwan issue”.

Qiang adds that China has permitted Taiwan experts to attend WHO meetings. But Chen counters that they were invited to SARS meetings on the basis of their expertise and that Chinese interference delayed the invitations.

According to a WHO official, many of its members, including most European countries, do not want to grant Taiwan observer status in case this is seen a step towards diplomatic recognition. But Chen says he will be back next year to press the case for the admission of a country that, with 23 million people, has a larger population than three-quarters of the WHO member states.