Huawei is suing the FCC, which is trying to block it from providing equipment to rural America

REUTERS/Aly Song

Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei.

• Last month the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) cut Huawei off from a $8.5 billion pot of government subsidies designed to help rural communities buy telecoms equipment.
• The FCC said it was blocking US companies from using subsidy money to buy Huawei kit, claiming the company represents a national security threat.
• Huawei announced a legal challenge against the FCC on Thursday, calling the decision "unlawful."
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Huawei is once again locking horns with the US government.

The Chinese tech giant announced at a press conference on Thursday that it has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for blocking rural US communities from using subsidies to buy Huawei telecoms equipment.

That's after FCC chairman Ajit Pai announced in October he would block US companies from dipping into the $8.5 billion Universal Service Fund (USF) to purchase from companies that pose a "national security threat." The order was voted through on November 22.

The US government has repeatedly accused Huawei of posing a national security threat by acting as a conduit for the Chinese government to spy. Huawei denies the allegations, and its CEO Ren Zhengfei has said he would rather shut down the company than allow it become a vehicle for espionage.

In a statement sent to Business Insider, Huawei called the order unlawful.

"Banning a company like Huawei, just because we started in China - this does not solve cyber security challenges," said Huawei's chief legal officer Song Liuping. "The FCC should not shut down joint efforts to connect rural communities in the US," he added.

Huawei's chief counsel for the legal challenge, Glen Nager, said that the FCC had exceeded its remit in designating Huawei a national security threat, saying the Commission has "no national security expertise or authority."

The FCC was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Business Insider. However on its website, the agency states that cybersecurity and homeland security does fall into its remit.

It's not the first time this year Huawei has taken the US government to court. It sued the US for banning government officials from using Huawei equipment in March, and Bloomberg reported in June that the company had filed a suit against the Department of Commerce for seizing equipment.

NOW WATCH: What's going on with TikTok?