While blasting the Japanese justice system for unfairly keeping him from his wife and family for months, Carlos Ghosn also thanked those who have welcomed him in Lebanon where he fled to in late December.

Ghosn, 65, the former chairman of Nissan Motor Co., held a news conference in Beirut on Jan. 8 in which he maintained his innocence and spoke about how he intends to clear his name in the future.

Excerpts of the question-and-answer session with about 100 reporters follow:

Question: What were your feelings about taking the risk to flee Japan?

Ghosn: I felt like I had died on Nov. 19, 2018 (when I was arrested). I did not know if I would ever be able to meet with those I loved and I felt my life had shrunk. I had been forced into a system I did not understand so I felt like I had died.

If you faced a similar experience, you would become numb as a way to protect yourself from the pain. That was the only way to go on living. When I realized I had escaped such a situation, I felt like I had been reborn.

Q: Can you tell us your feelings when you got on the plane to freedom?

Ghosn: Obviously, I was nervous, I was tense. I was hopeful. I had been in a kind of nightmare for 13 months. The nightmare started when I saw the face of the prosecutor and it ended when I saw the face of my wife.

Q: How do you feel about the prospect of living out the rest of your life as an international fugitive? Is that the price to pay for getting out of Japan? Is it worth it?

Ghosn: I have been in too many missions impossible. When I went in Japan in 1999, everybody told me, "It's impossible. You don't speak Japanese. You are coming from France." I want to find ways to make sure that the truth is going to come back.

In Lebanon, I am surrounded by people who respect me and who are proud of me. In the next weeks, I will take some initiative to clear my name and to make sure that all the evidence is going to come to the table. I want everything I have done be restored as a very important actor in the car industry, and not into a propaganda system where I appear as a cold, greedy dictator.

Q: It might seem to some that you have substituted a very small cell in Japan for a much larger one here in Lebanon. Would you even risk getting on a plane to go to France (with the request issued by Interpol for your detention)?

Ghosn: There is a red notice that the Japanese government has sent through Interpol. My lawyers say we can fight the red notice. I don't consider myself as a prisoner in Lebanon. I prefer this prison to the one where I was before. I am with my family. My kids can come visit me. I can use the phone and the internet. I don't have "followers" (keeping an eye on me). The only followers I have now are people who want to talk to me. I don't feel at all unhappy in Lebanon.

Q: You say there's been a conspiracy. How high up in the Japanese system does that conspiracy go? Would you be prepared to stand trial in Lebanon?

Ghosn: I don't think (Prime Minister Shinzo) Abe-san was involved. I need to avoid any friction between the two countries, and I think this is my duty to make sure that we don't create more tension. I would be ready to stand trial anywhere where I think I can have a fair trial.

My lawyers (in Japan) estimate five years of trials. A 99.4 percent conviction rate means I was seeing myself staying practically all my life in Japan. I had no hope so I decided to take the risk because I wanted justice.

Q: Do you have assurances from the Lebanese government that you won't be extradited?

Ghosn: I have no assurance of anybody, but I trust that the laws existing in Lebanon will be implemented.

Q: You were a respected CEO in Japan, but now you have broken the law in Japan. What do you want to say to the Japanese people?

Ghosn: I spent 27 years in Japan. The Japanese people have been good to me. When you have charges against you, you need to defend them. How can I defend myself if I am denied the tools to defend myself?

Breaking the law in Japan is a problem. But don't you think it's a problem that the prosecutor broke 10 laws in Japan. The prosecutor cannot leak. They are breaking the law but nobody cares. It's a rigged system.

Why am I being painted as evil? Why have I been treated like a terrorist in Japan?

Q: There are only a few Japanese media organizations here. How did you choose the companies?

Ghosn: This room, it's already full. I am not segregating against Japanese media and I'm not running from them. I wanted the BBC, CNN, CBS and NBC, the global big media. They're not going to be "sweet" to me, but they're going to be factual. Most of their colleagues have been telling everything Nissan and the prosecutors are saying without any single sense of criticism.

Q: Do you really think you can clear your name, given that there are widespread perceptions that Lebanon's judicial system is corrupt and not independent?

Ghosn: I don't agree with you. I think there are very competent people in Lebanon. (applause)

Q: Lebanon now faces an economic crisis of historic proportions. Do you have any plans to use your experience (as a businessman)?

Ghosn: I am not a politician. I have no political ambition. But if I am asked to do whatever I can for the nation by providing my experience, I am prepared to do so. There is no need for me to have a government position, but if I am asked, I am prepared to provide my opinion and experience in the economic field.

Q: Were you in contact with Netflix about the production of a piece about your fleeing Japan?

Ghosn: I have had no contact with Netflix. While many people were active in my fleeing, I have no intention of talking about that because many people would face difficulties if I did so.

Q: Did you ever propose a full-on merger between Nissan and Renault?

Ghosn: I didn't. The way I was presenting a holding company was a very good balance between the wish of a full merger, from one side, and the desire for autonomy. They said, "Let's get rid of him." And that's what happened.

Q: Are you willing to present all the evidence you have for a fair assessment?

Ghosn: I am prepared to present all documents to you besides what I showed you today. The documents today were only samples. There are many other documents I can provide.

When I was in prison, no one spoke up (to provide evidence for my innocence). But many people will come out to speak now. Documents will also likely be released. If you contact my lawyers, they can show you the documents.

Q: Are you prepared to respond to requests for questioning by the French judicial authorities?

Ghosn: I have not yet received such a request. I have no knowledge about that investigation. If the French judicial authorities ask to speak with me, I will obviously respond because there is nothing for which I have to be criticized.