The Chinese ambassador threatened to retaliate if Berlin removed Huawei from the list of 5G equipment suppliers, referring to millions of German cars sold in China.

"If Germany decides to remove Huawei from the market, it will have to bear the consequences. China will not sit still," Wu Ken, Chinese Ambassador to Germany, said on Dec. 14 in an event of German newspaper Handelsblatt.

The statement by the Chinese ambassador came amid growing opposition to German parliamentarians, and challenged Chancellor Angela Merkel's China policy by banning "untrusted" 5G contractors.

Without specifically mentioning Huawei, the bill is supposed to be aimed at the Chinese company, following security concerns raised over the past few months.

Huawei has repeatedly denied allegations that its device is at risk of espionage and vandalism.

Ambassador Wu Ken said Huawei had no obligation to provide data to the Chinese government, and "reminded" that German manufacturers accounted for a quarter of the 28 million cars sold in China last year.

"Can it be said that one day, the position of the German car is shaken because we make it? No, because it is purely protectionism," he said in an interview video on the Handelsblatt website.

The US has banned domestic companies from doing business with Huawei Technologies, blacklisted many other Chinese companies for national security reasons, and urged allies to implement the ban. Washington threatens to retaliate against any government that allows the Chinese company to participate in developing 5G network technology.

Huawei on Thursday said it had filed a lawsuit against the US Federal Communications Commission because it banned US carriers from using federal subsidies to buy their equipment.