Scotland's Business Secretary said he was "blocked" from European talks on the future of the steel industry by the UK Government.
Fergus Ewing said it was "deeply disappointing" he had not been allowed to take part in the meeting in Brussels.
With 270 Scottish steel workers at Tata's plants in Dalzell and Clydebridge to lose their jobs, Mr Ewing said he had asked to join UK Business Secretary Sajid Javid for the talks.
But he said Mr Javid had told him it would "not be possible to accommodate your request" and instead offered for his officials to brief Scottish Government officials on the outcomes of the meetings.
Mr Ewing said: "The Scottish Government asked to attend these key talks because we believe we could have made a very substantial contribution to the discussions representing the affected communities in Scotland.
"We attend many meetings in Brussels, so it is deeply disappointing to be excluded from discussions about the steel industry.
"The Tory government has belatedly recognised that it urgently needs to do something about steel dumping - and bring forward help for industries with high energy costs.
"Despite being blocked from the Brussels meeting, we will continue to do everything we can, with the first meeting of the taskforce taking place in Hamilton tomorrow.
"All of those taking part are aware of the challenges in finding a commercial buyer and protecting as many jobs as possible - but we will not give up on Scotland's steel industry and its workers."
Mr Javid has said he was having talks with trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, internal market commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska and vice-president Jyrki Katainen to call for action to tackle the crisis in the steel industry.
The Business Secretary said: ''I want to see steel top of the EU agenda. We cannot stand by while the steel industry across Europe, not just in the UK, faces such unprecedented challenges.
''There are no straightforward solutions to the complex global challenges but the UK Government wants to work with the EU and our European partners to do all we can to support our steel industry.''
A spokesman for the UK Department of Business, Innovation and Skills said: "The Secretary of State is representing the whole of the United Kingdom in his meetings with EU representatives today and will act in the best interests of all nations within it, including Scotland."
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