After lobbying by medical professionals in Taiwan, in 1997 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivered a formal letter to the director-general of the WHO urging him to invite Taiwan to participate in the WHO with "observer" status. The WHO rejected the request, stating that it would require a resolution of the UN and WHO assemblies, which would be too controversial.
在台灣若干醫界人士的奔走呼籲後，一九九七年外交部正式致函 WHO 幹事長，促請其邀請我國以「觀察員」身分參與該組織，WHO 回覆指出，台灣申請案涉及違反聯合國及世界衛生大會的決議，恐將引起爭議，因此無法同意。