French far-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon criticized the European Central Bank for raising interest rates, broadening his campaign against ECB policies as he proposes eliminating French debt to the central bank. His stance reflects escalating tension between eurozone policy and anti-establishment French politics as of September 7, 2026.
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French Presidential Candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon: So I said how I intended to deal with the debt that we owe to the independent central bank — the European Central Bank. The central bank does not have the right to directly buy government debt from a state. They decided this — it is absurd. But it gave itself the right, recognized by European courts, to buy French debt securities from private banks
French far-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon slammed the European Central Bank for raising interest rates, broadening his attack on the institution’s policies.