Trump’s dead economy remark should not be taken literally: Shashi Tharoor 

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has said US President Donald Trump's remark terming India a “dead economy” was meant to be an "insult" and must not be taken "literally".

Tharoor on Sunday said when wars are being conducted with the active involvement of some of the biggest powers, and people who are supposed to be upholding world order are contributing to promoting disorder, India needs to be very clear about its national interests.

The senior Congress leader, who was in conversation with Crossword CEO Aakash Gupta in Pune, spoke on a wide range of issues, including his latest book, ‘The Living Constitution’.

US President Trump last week called India a “dead economy” just hours after he announced a 25 per cent tariff on the import of Indian goods along with an unspecified “penalty” for buying “vast majority” of Russian military equipment and crude oil.

Tharoor said it is a turbulent and unpredictable world, especially with Trump in the White House.

"On Trump, let me say, you can't take him literally, but you do need to take him seriously. He is the President of the US, and the decisions he makes can affect policies, and policies can affect us. So take him seriously, but don't take him literally, not every word. When he says your economy is dead, it's like a schoolboy in the playground saying your mother is ugly. You are not supposed to take that seriously. It is meant to be an insult, not meant to be taken literally," he said.

The entire impact of Trump's tariff policies over the last six months or so has taken the whole world back, and India too had a bit of a jolt just two to three days ago, Tharoor said.

"We are going to have to recover because the American relationship, and I don't just mean the trade relationship, the strategic partnership, is important enough for us to want to make the real effort to make this work. So I think there is a lot that needs to be done," he said.