Taiwan's bid to take part in WHO annual assembly fails

GENEVA (Reuters) - Taiwan's bid to take part in the annual ministerial assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) formally ended on Monday, despite support from a handful of countries including allies of the United States.

The decision not to include Taiwan on the agenda, taken by WHO's general committee, was announced by Bhutan's Health Minister Dasho Dechen Wangmo, who serves as president of the week-long assembly.

Minutes earlier in the debate, Chen Xu, China's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, called on countries supporting Taiwan's participation in the WHO ministerial assembly to "stop politicising the issue" and to uphold the 'One China' principle.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Kevin Liffey)