Trump says Irish unification would be 'fantastic'

Donald Trump said Saturday he would "love to see" a united Ireland, wading into a politically sensitive subject as he embarked on a two-day Irish visit that blurs the lines between his presidency and personal business interests.

After meeting Ireland's Prime Minister Micheal Martin in Dublin, Trump said reunification of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland -- split for over a century -- would be "a fantastic thing".

"The way I look at it, it's going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now," he told reporters, adding though that "the UK will have something to say about it, obviously".

The island of Ireland has been split between the Irish republic in the south and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, since 1921.

Under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which ended three decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland that killed about 3,000 people, a referendum can be held if the UK government determines a majority there is likely to favour joining the Republic of Ireland.

The people of the Republic of Ireland would also have to vote in favour for reunification to occur.

The United States has previously adopted a position of neutrality on the issue.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham insisted last month that a unity referendum was "off the table", drawing a sharp response from the pro-unity party Sinn Fein.

"As unionists we are not interested in the destruction of our country by joining with the Irish Republic," Gavin Robinson, leader of the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party, said on X in response to Trump's comments.

The US president touched down at Dublin airport in his Qatari-gifted plane shortly before 8:25 am (0725 GMT) under a security operation dubbed one of the largest ever mounted in Ireland.

At least 4,000 police and other personnel, including snipers, are mobilised for the visit, which will see Trump fly to his luxury resort in Doonbeg on Ireland's west coast to watch the Irish Open golf tournament.

He inspected a military guard of honour after being received by left-wing President Catherine Connolly, an outspoken critic of the US leader.

He then met Martin, when the Iran war and US tariffs on EU pharmaceuticals and immigration were on the agenda.

Ireland and the United States have long been close allies, partly because of their common ancestral ties.

But the Irish government's politics diverge sharply from those of the Trump administration on many issues, with Ireland being one of Europe's most pro-Palestinian countries.

Ireland is among several countries, including Spain, the UK and France, that have announced a trade ban targeting Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

After a brief visit to the US embassy, Trump was due to fly to his Doonbeg resort -- a remote, coastal site in County Clare that the Trump Organization purchased in 2014.

His attendance at the Irish Open adds an extra layer of complexity to a security effort that is reportedly costing Ireland 20 million euros ($23 million).

It comes with the country already grappling with a massive policing operation for its six-month presidency of the EU.

Some 40,000 fans are expected at the tournament over the weekend, with six-time major winner and current world number two Rory McIlroy the main draw.

McIlroy, who has played golf with Trump, told the BBC this week that the tournament will feel "different" with the US president on site, but that the players will just "keep our heads down and play".

The 80-year-old billionaire has promoted his family's golf business unabashedly since returning to the White House for his second stint as president in January 2025.

Last summer, he welcomed then-UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen to his plush resort at Turnberry on the west coast of Scotland.

Trump then inaugurated another golf course bearing his name in the town of Balmedie, near Aberdeen on the northeast Scottish coast.

The golf-mad president -- whose relaxed relationship with the game's rules was documented by sports journalist Rick Reilly in the 2019 book "Commander in Cheat" -- may even award the trophy on Sunday.

"He's really just visiting the golf resort he owns and dropping into Dublin for a courtesy visit," Daniel Geary, a US history professor at Trinity College Dublin, told AFP.

"He sees little difference between his private interests and his role as president."