Top French, Japan Leaders to Discuss Renault-Nissan Alliance

French President Emmanuel Macron and Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet next week to discuss the future of the troubled Renault-Nissan alliance.

A spokesman for Macron says the French state wants to underscore its desire to support the 20-year-old partnership. Macron is not expected to bring up Fiat Chrysler Automobile NV’s offer to merge with Renault. That deal collapsed when FCA withdrew its offer, citing meddling by the French government.

France owns a 15% stake in Renault SA and has been fiercely protective of French jobs when voicing its views about the alliance’s business decisions.

Relations between Renault and Nissan have been strained for more than a year over the French carmaker’s desire to merge the two partners. Nissan has been resentful of a power imbalance in the alliance, which gives it little clout in spite of contributing most of the partnership’s sales and revenue.

Further strain and suspicion has develops since Carlos Ghosn, the former chairman of both companies, was arrested last November on suspicion of financial wrongdoing. The arrest was based on a secret Nissan probe that Renault knew nothing about beforehand.