Internet reports that Villeroy, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank and President of the Bank of France, joined the ranks of global policymakers to warn the White House of attacks on the Federal Reserve. "We Europeans must defend the independence of central banks in response to the Trump administration's serious setback," he said in Vienna. "Independence is not an obstacle to achieving reasonably low interest rates," Villeroy said. Rather, it is a prerequisite for achieving reasonably low interest rates because it can control inflation over the long term and anchor the expectations of economic entities." Villeroy added that the threat to the Fed has broader implications. He said: "Independence is given by democracy, and attacking this independence violates U.S. law and is a danger to democracy."