The U.S. President, Donald Trump, said this Saturday, the 12th, that a unified Ireland would be “fantastic,” addressing a complex and politically delicate topic during a weekend visit to a major golf tournament.
In a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in Dublin, Trump said he would love to see the reunification of the Republic of Ireland with Northern Ireland, which belongs to the United Kingdom.
“I don’t want to cause trouble, but I would love to see that happen,” Trump said. “It will happen eventually. It’s better that it happens now.”
“I think it would be something fantastic,” he said, adding that “the United Kingdom obviously will have a say in this.”
Debate over Irish reunification is heated
Competing views about Northern Ireland – whether Irish or British – have fueled decades of violence in the region, which left about 3,600 dead. Previous American presidents avoided commenting directly on the subject, even those like Joe Biden, with strong emotional ties to Ireland.
When Ireland, long dominated by its larger neighbor, Great Britain, became an autonomous country with a Roman Catholic majority about a century ago, a six-county region in the north, with a Protestant majority, remained part of the United Kingdom.
Northern Ireland was divided between two main communities: the nationalists – the Catholic majority – who desired unification with the rest of Ireland, and the unionists, predominantly Protestant, who wanted to remain British.
The tensions eventually exploded into the Troubles, three decades of violence involving paramilitary groups on both sides and British troops.
A 1998 peace agreement, in which the U.S. played a fundamental role, largely ended the violence but left the final status of Northern Ireland unresolved.
Encounter with the Irish president who criticized Trump
Trump also held talks this Saturday in Dublin with Ireland’s president, Catherine Connolly, and will address American and Irish business leaders at the official residence of the U.S. ambassador in Dublin, before traveling to his seaside golf club in Doonbeg, on the other side of the country, to watch the Irish Open.
Connolly is a left-wing politician who was among those who protested when Trump visited Ireland in 2019, during his first term. She is now Ireland’s elected head of state, in a role that carries significant ceremonial influence. A defender of the Palestinian cause, she has criticized U.S. policy in the Middle East and called Trump a “bully.”
The Irish president met Trump at the end of a red carpet at her official residence. They shook hands and spoke before entering. He left alone a few minutes later and saluted as a band from the Irish Defence Forces played the U.S. national anthem and inspected the Irish Army guard of honor.
Subsequently, Connolly joined Trump outside to introduce the U.S. and Ireland delegations, before the leaders returned indoors for their closed-door discussions.
Trump’s visit is the latest example of how he blends his official duties with his personal interests.
Trump’s visit irritates some residents
The police sealed off the area around Phoenix Park, in Dublin, spanning 700 hectares, where he met Connolly at Áras an Uachtaráin. He is set to meet with Martin, the Taoiseach (Irish prime minister), at the government’s official residence in Farmleigh, and will stop at Deerfield, the U.S. ambassador’s residence.
Some residents expressed irritation at the disruption. “He’s causing chaos in this city because he wants to go to Doonbeg to play golf,” said taxi driver Christopher Fox, who is not a Trump fan. “The world is in turmoil and this guy is over there playing golf.”
University student Mina Petrovski stated that Trump’s “attitudes toward women, immigrants and minority communities in general are abominable.” She said it was “shameful that the Irish government is welcoming him with open arms.”
Meanwhile, a coalition of left-wing opposition parties, anti-militarist groups, pro-Palestine organizations, environmentalists and others plan to protest against Trump in Dublin this Saturday.
Eric Trump defends his family’s presence in Ireland
Trump’s son, Eric, says the family is loved in Ireland, despite planned protests for his father’s visit.
In an interview with Ireland’s national broadcaster RTE on Friday, the 11th, in Doonbeg, the town where the Trump International golf resort is located, Eric Trump said the course is the region’s largest employer.
“Come down to Morrissey’s Tavern in Doonbeg and hear from a real Irishman whether he likes President Trump and the Trump family. Ask him to attest to what we have done for the country, what we have invested in it, and the love and respect our family has always shown for them,” he said.
Trump traveled overnight to Ireland after commemorations marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The Republican president spent the two nights prior to Friday’s solemn ceremony giving long speeches at a political rally in Dallas.
Trump Likes to Play Golf
Trump plays golf almost every weekend at clubs he owns in Florida, New Jersey and Virginia. His presence at the Irish Open continues his pattern of attending high-profile sporting events—and of taking part in organizing some of them in ways that benefit the family’s business. His clubs in Doral, Florida, and Bedminster, New Jersey, have already hosted professional golf tournaments this year.
The Irish Open is the second European Tour event to be staged on a Trump-owned property this year. The Nexo Championship was held last month at Trump’s golf course in Aberdeen, Scotland.
Last year, Trump traveled to Scotland for five days to play golf at his Turnberry club and later opened a new Trump golf course in Balmedie, Aberdeenshire. During that visit, he held talks with the British prime minister and the president of the European Commission.
