Japan Says Lebanon Must Cooperate over Ghosn to Avoid 'Negative Repercussions'

The Lebanese presidential palace said Tuesday that President Michel Aoun met with Japanese Ambassador to Lebanon Takeshi Okubo, the first known meeting between the president and a Japanese diplomat since the fugitive Carlos Ghosn arrived in Lebanon on December 30.

A statement released by Aoun's office said Okubo called for more cooperation from Lebanese authorities in order to avoid "negative repercussions" on relations between the two countries.

Okubo said the Japanese government and people "are extremely worried" about the case, especially the way Ghosn left Japan and entered Lebanon, according to the statement.

Japan's chief government spokesman said Japanese officials have told Lebanon that Ghosn left the country illegally and that they are seeking cooperation in finding out what happened. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the situation must be handled carefully.

Ghosn escaped to Lebanon while he was out on bail awaiting trial for alleged financial misconduct.

Lebanon and Japan do not have an extradition treaty. Japanese justice officials acknowledge that it's unclear whether Ghosn and his wife Carole can be brought back to Japan to face charges. They said they were still looking into what could be done.

Caretaker Justice Minister Albert Serhan told the state-run National News Agency that Ghosn entered Lebanon legally and therefore his "stay on Lebanese territories" is legal. Serhan added that Lebanon has not yet received any requests from Japan regarding an arrest warrant for Carole Ghosn.

Earlier Tuesday, Ghosn's former employer, Nissan Motor Co., said it was still pursuing legal action against him despite his escape.

The Japanese automaker said in a statement that Ghosn engaged in serious misconduct while leading the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi alliance.

"The company will continue to take appropriate legal action to hold Ghosn accountable for the harm that his misconduct has caused to Nissan," it said, without giving details.

Ghosn managed to skip bail and leave the country despite surveillance while he was staying at a home in Tokyo.

Japanese news reports Tuesday gave new details of that escape, saying he left his residence alone, met two men at a Tokyo hotel, and then took a bullet train to Osaka before boarding a private jet hidden inside a case for musical equipment.

Japanese major business daily Nikkei reported, without citing sources, that dozens of people in various countries helped to plan Ghosn's clandestine departure.

The automaker and Japanese prosecutors allege Ghosn misstated his future compensation and diverted company assets for personal gain. He says he is innocent.

Ghosn has not appeared in public since arriving in Lebanon. He is expected to give his side of the story in a news conference planned for Wednesday in Beirut.

Earlier, he said the allegations against him were concocted by Nissan, Japanese authorities and others who wanted to block efforts toward a fuller merger between Nissan and its French alliance partner Renault SA.

Ghosn said in a statement last week that he wanted to escape "injustice." Critics of the Japanese judicial system say his case exemplifies its tendency to move too slowly and keep suspects in detention for too long.

Nissan said in its statement that an investigation is ongoing in France, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has found some wrongdoing.

Ghosn has not been charged in France or the U.S.

Mori and other Japanese officials have defended the nation's judicial system and denounced Ghosn's escape as an "unjustifiable" crime. Mori said each nation's system has its own way of making arrests and granting bail.

Although Ghosn is unlikely to face trial in Japan, Greg Kelly, another Nissan former executive, is still facing charges of under-reporting Ghosn's future compensation. He says he is innocent.