The World Health Organization (WHO) said Taiwan already works closely with it on the COVID-19 pandemic amid calls for it to join the World Health Assembly, which China has denounced as "political manipulation" on the part of the U.S..  

The WHO said it was not in its power to appoint Taiwan to the WHA, the forum through the body is governed by its 194 member states.

"When it comes to participation at the World Health Assembly, that is something that is in the hands of the member states, the countries that constitute the assembly," Steven Solomon, the WHO's principal legal officer, said.

"And that is a decision that they are empowered to make. It is not a decision where the secretariat has the power to act."

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G7 foreign ministers last week called for Taiwan to join the WHA. 

In a statement regarding the matter, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said: "Taiwan offers valuable contributions and lessons learned from its approach to these issues and WHO leadership and all responsible nations should recognize that excluding the interests of 24 million people at the WHA serves only to imperil, not advance, our shared global health objectives."

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Chunying Hua accused the U.S. of "political manipulation" of the issue and said Taiwan has to accept it is part of China if it wants access to global bodies.

"I want to emphasize once again that the Taiwan issue concerns China's core interests. China has no room for compromise," Hua told reporters.

Solomon said experts from Taiwan already work closely with the WHO on many issues.

"The ... participation of Taiwanese experts with the secretariat on our work responding to the COVID-19 pandemic is ... very robust," he said.

"The Taiwanese have a point of contact for the international health regulations. They participate in key networks for responding to COVID-19. 

"They participate in the COVAX facility. They work with our experts through the European Centers for Disease Control.

"And we work face-to-face through virtual meetings with Taiwanese experts and have done so regularly for months."

For its part, Taiwan has been campaigning to join the WHA and stated that it would "fight" for an invitation.