Draghi says criticism of ECB is 'unfair'

(FRANKFURT) - European Central Bank president Mario Draghi said Wednesday it was "not fair" to label the ECB as the main perpetrator of unpopular austerity in Europe as protestors clashed with police outside.

"As an EU institution that has played a central role throughout the crisis, the ECB has become a focal point for those frustrated with this situation," Draghi said at the inauguration of the bank's new twin-tower headquarters in the east of the city.

"This may not be a fair charge -- our action has been aimed precisely at cushioning the shocks suffered by the economy. But as the central bank of the whole euro area, we must listen very carefully to what all our citizens are saying."

The Italian, who has headed the ECB since 2011, was speaking at the official opening of the spectacular 185-metre (605-foot) high, 1.3-billion-euro ($1.4-billion) building, which staff already moved into late last year.

Outside, beyond a security zone erected with barriers and barbed wire, hundreds of activists waged violent street battles with police, setting cars ablaze, throwing stones and smashing windows, ahead of a massive organised rally in the city centre later in the afternoon.

Speaking to around 100 invited guests, Draghi acknowledged that "people are going through very difficult times," and pointed to surveys showing that people felt life had become worse since the crisis.

"I understand what motivates these views, why people want to see a change," he said.

The ECB has decided to keep the inaugural celebrations relatively low-key in face of the renewed flare-up in the sovereign debt crisis in Greece.

Around 10,000 anti-capitalist protesters were expected to converge on Germany's financial capital for an anti-austerity rally later on Wednesday, with a special train of 800 activists arriving from Berlin and 60 buses from 39 different cities across Europe.

In a bid to control the violence, authorities have mobilised one of the biggest ever police deployments in the city.