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Carlos Ghosn claims to be victim of 'Pearl Harbor' plot - business live
Carlos Ghosn claims to be victim of 'Pearl Harbor' plot - business live
(32 minutes later)
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Ghosn is asked whether he has any political ambitions in Lebanon.
We’ve embedded a video stream of Carlos Ghosn’s press conference at the top of this liveblog - you might need to refresh to see it.
He replies that he’s willing to use his expertise to help the country (who he spoke warmly about earlier). However he’s not planning to move into politics.
Ghosn is now defending a recent visit to Israel - saying he travelled there as a Renault executive.
Ghosn denies that he’s signed a deal with Netflix to create a TV drama about his escape.
This visit has caused some anger in Ghosn’s new home, as it is a crime for Lebanese citizens to visit Israel due to the long-running conflict between the two countries.
Carlos Ghosn is back to answer some questions from the media.
The BBC’s Simon Jack says Tokyo is going to respond to Ghosn’s claims of a government conspiracy against him.
But he repeats his refusal to reveal how he escaped Japan, as it will “expose several people” who helped him, and could lead to problems for them.
A Japanese journalist reminds Ghosn that he has broken the law by fleeing to Lebanon.
BREAKING! While Ghosn was delivering his monologue, Lebanon’s top state prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat announced he is calling him for questioning tomorrow.
Ghosn defends his decision to escape, claiming Japan’s prosecutor repeatedly broke the law by leaking details of the case against him
Oueidat wants to quiz Ghosn over the Red Notice issued by Interpol for his arrest, following his decision to flee Japan.
The Japanese people deserve better than a “rigged” justice system, Ghosn says, adding that he has been treated like a “terrorist”.
Ghosn is now outlining why it’s terribly unfair to claim he is a cold, greedy dictator.
Reuters: Have Lebanon promised that you won’t be extradited back to Japan?
He insists he was committed to Japan, saying he was the first foreign business leader to return to the country after the 2011 tsunami. He says he was the first to dare to go to Nissan’s plant near the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Ghosn says he doesn’t have such a pledge, but adds:
On the greed charge, Ghosn claims he turned down an offer to run General Motors on double his salary.
That’s a reminder that there isn’t currently an extradition treaty between the two countries.
And he insists he’s not a dictator, citing his long period of success turning Nissan around.
The BBC’s John Simpson asks Ghosn about his claim of a conspiracy between Nissan and the Japanese government -- how high does it go?
And with that, we’re taking a break! Ghosn is mopping his face with a handkerchief, and the media are looking hungry to ask some questions.
Ghosn says he doesn’t think the top of Japan’s government was involved -- absolving prime minister Shinzo Abe of blame*.
After presenting his case for an hour, Ghosn is proposing to hold a break before taking questions from reporters.
He also says he would face the fraud charges outside Japan, if he felt he would get justice
But not before he’s defended himself some more.
* - Bloomberg reported today that Ghosn came within a couple of hours of running into Abe in a Japanese hotel, when he began his escape.
He insists that the case against him is political.
Did you every propose a full-blown merger between Renault and Nissan?
Ever the businessman, Ghosn is now railing against Nissan for botching his plan to merge with rival Fiat-Chrysler.
Ghosn denies it, saying he simply proposed a holding company -- but since his arrest, the alliance has gone backwards.
Bringing the Italian-US carmaker into the Nissan-Renault alliance would have been a success, he says.
Ghosn says his lawyers believe they can fight the Interpol Red Notice.
But this deal died when Ghosn was arrested -- Fiat-Chrysler is merging with Peugeot owner, Groupe PSA, instead.
CNN: Haven’t you just swapped a small cell in Japan for a large one in Lebanon?
Ghosn berates his former company:
Ghosn says he isn’t unhappy in Lebanon, but he is going to fight.
Ghosn also denies another key part of the case against him, that he illicitly used Nissan’s money to buy houses around the world.
The Wall Street Journal asks Ghosn what he plans to do, now he’s a fugitive from justice.
He produces a letter approving these payments, signed by former CEO Hiroto Saikawa (who Ghosn claims is a key conspirator against him).
I am “used to Mission Impossible”, he replies, citing his long career in the auto industry.
Dozens of journalists were gathered outside Beirut’s press syndicate building for Ghosn’s press conference, including many who had flown in especially from Japan.
They stood in the rain guarded by heavily armed Lebanese police officers, descending on each car that pulled up the building. The arrival of two black Toyota Land Cruisers around 3pm caused a flurry - until what appeared to be a group of private security officers emerged. Ghosn had appeared to use the temporary rush to enter the building unseen through a side entrance, and appeared in the conference room a few moments later.
Ghosn now turns to the notorious party which he and wife Carole hosted at France’s Palace of Versailles to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.
We didn’t want to act like Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette, he insists. We chose Versailles because it is a symbol of France’s genius, and its openness to the world.
That party cost €635,000, but Ghosn denies there was anything suspicious - even though some friends from Lebanon and the US also attended.
Forty five minutes into his opening statement, Ghosn is now arguing that Nissan and Renault investors are also victims of the conspiracy against him.
He says they are the only major carmakers whose shares have fallen since his arrest, with €20m per day wiped off Renault’s value.
That’s a heavy price, compared to the $11m of allegedly dubious expenses, Ghosn says.
[Perhaps, but I don’t think fraud cases should really balanced against the impact on market capitalisation]
Carlos Ghosn is now denying that there was anything irregular in the “CEO reserve” payments at the heart of the fraud charges against him.
Pointing to a financial statement, he insists that he couldn’t use these funds for illicit purposes.
Last year, Reuters revealed how Ghosn and close associates spent money from a fund that some insiders dubbed ‘the CEO Reserve’ to help pay for residences used by the Ghosn family as well as for other personal expenses.
Ghosn now produces another plank of his defence -- even if one was guilty of such financial misconduct charges, no other country would punish them so harshly as Japan.
Not that he is admitting any guilt, of course.
Carlos Ghosn is now defending his decision to flee Japan, claiming he was effectively a hostage.
He says he was told he faced a five year wait before a judgement would be made on his fraud charges - giving him a choice between dying in Japan or escaping.
He’s also furious about the way he was portrayed.
Nissan was “in the dirt” before my arrival, Ghosn says, and now he am described as “a cold, greedy dictator”.
Carlos Ghosn has now been speaking without interruption for 30 minutes -- speaking passionately about his (claimed) innocence, and slamming Japan’s legal system.
He’s now claiming that the whole arrest was staged, and that there is collusion between Nissan and the prosecutor -- who is effectively the judge, he blasts.
Ghosn is now explaining how he was arrested last year.
He slams the “bullshit” claim that he was arrested on a plane, insisting that he was apprehended going through airport security.
In a highly provocative, and distasteful move, Ghosn is comparing this alleged plot to remove him to the Pearl Harbor attacks!
He says his friends have asked how he didn’t notice he was being set up -- and he reminds them how the Japanese air force caught the Americans by surprise in 1941.
That is going to cause fury in Japan, we suspect.
Ghosn also claims that Japanese government officials were involved in this plot to get rid of him.
But, pressing his hands together in prayer, Ghosn says he is “imposing silence” on himself on this issue, as he doesn’t want to hurt the Lebanese people or their government.....
