(STRASBOURG) - The chairman of the group of eurozone finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker, defended the European Central Bank's independence on Wednesday while acknowledging governments had the right to criticise it.

"The independence of the central bank is a founding principle of economic and monetary union," Juncker told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

The ECB comes under frequent fire from France and to a lesser extent Italy, which criticize it for focusing too much on fighting inflation and neglecting economic growth as a result.

"I think we need to close a sterile and futile debate which has nothing to do with reality," said Juncker, who is both Luxembourg's finance ministers and premier.

"That doesn't mean that we do not have the right to criticize the bank," he said.

ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet, also speaking to the European Parliament, stressed that the central bank's independence was key to its success in fighting inflation.

"It is because we have this very visible independence and this primary mandate, which is clear on price stability, that we've been successful until now in anchoring inflation expectations," he told EU lawmakers.

Despite slowing economic growth in the 15 countries sharing the euro, the ECB raised interest rates last week in order to keep a lid on inflation, which hit a record 4.0 percent in June.

Following the move, French President Nicolas Sarkozy renewed his criticism of the ECB.

"I have the right as president of the French republic to wonder if it is reasonable to raise the European rates to 4.25 percent while the Americans have rates of 2.0 percent," he said.

Eurozone finance ministers agreed at a meeting on Monday in Brussels that ECB was justified in raising the cost borrowing in the 15 nation bloc in the face of record inflation, leaving France isolated in its criticism.

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