French authorities have pressed Japan to agree to a merger of France's Renault SA and Japan's Nissan Motor Co after the arrest of ex-Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, the Japan Times reported on Sunday.
The demand, which has been voiced during top-level negotiations in Tokyo, directly stems from French President Emmanuel Macron.
READ MORE: Tokyo Prosecutors Indict Ex-Nissan Chairman Ghosn on New Charges — Reports
The request comes after last month, Macron and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe discussed the matter, agreeing to secure stable relations between the three-company alliance — Renaut, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
In November, Carlos Ghosn was arrested on allegations of misreporting his earnings over a five-year period, from 2010. Despite denying the accusations, a court ruled to extend Ghosn's arrest in 2018 to 1 January.
The prosecutor's office later brought new charges against Ghosn, suspecting him of shifting a personal investment loss worth more than $16 million onto the Japanese automaker. On 31 December 2018, a Tokyo court decided to extend Ghosn's detention by another 10 days, until 11 January, as part of an arrest warrant linked to breach of trust.