Former ECB chief economist Issing is flogging his book in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
He says it is unreasonable to call on the ECB to buy bonds and that Germany cannot be blackmailed by bring up its history.
Mr. Issing said it was wrong to expect the European Central Bank, tasked primarily with maintaining price stability in the euro zone, to step into the breach and buy the bonds of troubled euro zone states.
“This does not solve the problems and is not legitimate,” he said, adding that it violates EU treaties.
EUR/USD has fallen to fresh session lows at 1.22566 in the wake of the comments.
