NEW YORK - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde praised US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell on Monday, highlighting the importance of central banks remaining independent of political interference.

At the annual policy conference of the National Association for Business Economics in Washington DC, Lagarde spoke highly of Powell's efforts to control inflation against the weight of political pressure, calling it "an important reminder" that "while we need legal frameworks to ensure central bank independence, frameworks alone are never enough."

Without central bank independence being protected, cherished and exercised with accountability, "I don't think that we would be capable of responding in the way we have to tame inflation," Lagarde said.

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After the Fed received grand jury subpoenas on Jan 9 from the Justice Department in a criminal probe of Powell over the central bank's multibillion-dollar headquarters renovation, Lagarde and more than a dozen central bank chiefs issued a statement voicing "full solidarity" with the Fed and Powell, saying central bank independence is "a cornerstone of price, financial and economic stability in the interest of the citizens that we serve."

The investigation marks a significant escalation in US President Donald Trump's long-running pressure campaign against Powell, whom he has repeatedly attacked for resisting his demands to sharply cut interest rates.

On Jan 30, Trump nominated former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, a vocal critic of the US central bank, to serve as its next chair.