The United States and other countries persuaded the United Nations to stop using the phrase "Taiwan is part of China", according to a document released by anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks.

The US government obtained the promise in August 2007 after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had publicly referred to Taiwan as part of China, a cable sent from the US delegation at the UN revealed.

"Ban said he realised he had gone too far in his recent public statements, and confirmed that the UN would no longer use the phrase 'Taiwan is a part of China'," the cable said.

This appeared to be a reference to an episode the previous month when Ban used the phrase after a reporter asked him to comment on a bid by Taiwan to join the UN.

Canada and Japan received similar reassurances from the UN that the phrase -- standard terminology in China -- would no longer be used, according to the cable.

In 1971 the government in Taipei held the UN seat for China, rather than Beijing.

Taiwan launched its 15th bid for a UN seat in 2007, a move which was later blocked.

Names and titles are highly sensitive in the diplomatic tug of war that Taiwan and China have been waging since 1949, when the two sides split at the end of a civil war.

Taiwan's foreign ministry declined to comment on the cable, but said Ban again referred to the island as part of China in October 2007. The ministry declined to specify where and under which circumstances this happened.

Beijing insists that Taiwan is part of China awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

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