Draghi's five years at the helm of the ECB
Five years ago, Mario Draghi took over as president of the ECB. Under him, the bank has been in crisis-fighting mode. Here are some of Draghi's best-known quotes, earning him praise or raising eyebrows.
Save the euro!
"Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro, and believe me, it will be enough." This is arguably Draghi's most famous quote. It dates from July 2012, and the mere statement helped to calm markets.
Fueling economic expansion
"Monetary policy has been the only policy in the past four years supporting growth in the eurozone." - This 2016 statement by Draghi following an April ECB governors' meeting in Frankfurt can easily be construed as a broadside against politicians.
Greece in focus?
"The fewer changes made in a country, the more often I repeat my messages - and it works." Draghi could have had in mind a lot of eurozone nations when saying that, but Greece seemed to be an obvious candidate (perhaps without the "and it works" part of the quote).
Europe's powerhouse
"We won't make the weak stronger by making the strong weaker. If Germany were less competitive, the euro area as a whole would lose, because less could be produced then." - However, Germany's excessive trade surplus remains a thorn in the side of fellow eurozone nations.
Italy, Portugal, Spain and others
"There is no better protection against the euro crisis than successful structural reforms in southern Europe." That statement has lost nothing of its importance even now that the very existence of the single currency seems no longer theatened.
Critics galore
"Long-term interest rates are determined largely by global financial markets," Draghi said in defending the ECB's protracted period of ultra-low interest rates that savers feel are giving them a bad deal. And sometimes, criticism of Draghi's policies can be very direct.