As with its predecessor, the Securities Markets Program, the OMT program is legally and democratically questionable: it violates the spirit, but not the letter, of the European Union treaty’s no-bailout clause; its promise of equal treatment with private creditors still has no precedent; and it involves back-door fiscal transfers, leaving the ECB heavily exposed to political backlash – witness the visceral reaction of the German press to ECB President Mario Draghi’s announcement.
De même que son prédécesseur, le Programme pour les marchés de titre (SMP), l'OMT est contestable du point de vue juridique et du point de vue démocratique : il viole l'esprit et la lettre de la clause de non-intervention du traité de l'Union européenne.