Dec 24 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) has asked to

participate in Google's upcoming U.S. antitrust trial over

online search, saying it cannot rely on Google to defend

revenue-sharing agreements that send the iPhone maker billions

of dollars each year for making Google the default search engine

on its Safari browser.

Apple ( AAPL ) does not plan to build its own search engine to

compete with Alphabet's Google, whether or not the

payments continue, the company's lawyers said in court papers

filed in Washington on Monday. Apple ( AAPL ) received an estimated $20

billion from its agreement with Google in 2022 alone.

Apple ( AAPL ) wants to call witnesses to testify at an April trial.

Prosecutors will seek to show Google must take several measures,

including selling its Chrome web browser and potentially its

Android operating system, to restore competition in online

search.

"Google can no longer adequately represent Apple's ( AAPL )

interests: Google must now defend against a broad effort to

break up its business units," Apple ( AAPL ) said.

The Department of Justice's prosecution of Google is a

landmark case that could reshape how users find online

information.

Google has proposed to loosen its default agreements with

browser developers, mobile-device manufacturers and wireless

carriers, but not to end its agreements to share a portion of ad

revenue Google generates from search.

A spokesperson for Google declined to comment on Tuesday.