Trump says Irish unification would be ‘fantastic,’ wading into sensitive topic during weekend visit

Dublin (CNN) — President Donald Trump said Saturday that Irish reunification “would be a fantastic thing” during a bilateral meeting with Ireland’s taoiseach, Micheál Martin, something he projected is “going to happen eventually.”

When a reporter asked his view on the topic, Trump at first acknowledged his comments could inflame a politically sensitive issue before voicing support.

“Well, I don’t want to cause any trouble,” Trump said Saturday. “But I will tell you, I’d love to see it unified.”

The reunification of Ireland has long been considered a contentious issue, dividing opinion among the Unionists, typically from Protestant backgrounds, who would like Northern Ireland to remain part of the United Kingdom and Republicans, typically from Catholic backgrounds, who would like to see it reunited with the Republic of Ireland.

For nearly 30 years, Northern Ireland was plagued by significant sectarian violence and disorder, in a period known as the Troubles. Under the US-brokered 1997 “Good Friday” agreement, which brought peace to the province, a majority of voters in border polls held both in the north and south would need to be in favor of reunification for this to take place. Wary of such sensitivities, US presidents have typically avoided explicitly commenting on the issue, even President Joe Biden, who frequently referenced his Irish heritage.

Trump’s comments were almost immediately met with pushback from the UK government and unionists. Downing Street pointed CNN to newly installed Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s comments in August when he downplayed the prospect of an imminent border poll in Northern Ireland. That is “off the table,” he said, later confirming he would “100%” follow the Good Friday Agreement.

Gavin Robinson, who leads the Democratic Unionist Party, said that Northern Ireland’s future “will be decided by the people of Northern Ireland, not by commentary in London, Dublin or Washington.”

However, Trump seemed confident the move would happen eventually and questioned how it could be a negative thing.

“It’s going to happen eventually. … I think it will happen now. You’ve got the right man over here to get it moving,” Trump said, pointing at Martin. “But yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing. Now the UK will have something to say about obviously, but I think it would be a great thing.”

Trump touched down in Ireland on Saturday morning to hold talks with the country’s leaders before attending a tournament at one of his golf courses.

Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. and his wife, Bettina, disembarked from the plane afterward and also greeted officials on the ground.

During the visit, President Trump heard an Irish band play the American national anthem, immediately followed by the Irish anthem, while Irish President Catherine Connolly stood by. Trump briefly answered a couple of questions after the courtesy call with Connolly, including one concerning traffic through the Bab al-Mandeb strait.

“Everything will work out just fine. It’s all going to work out fine,” Trump said.

This visit takes Trump out the US at a crucial time for him politically, just weeks before the midterms and as the Iran-backed Houthis’ rapid advance in Yemen threatens to open a second front in the war with Tehran.

During his time in Ireland, Trump will largely be shielded from the public and kept away from expected protests. Instead, he was ferried by motorcade straight to three official government residences in Phoenix Park, a huge urban park in central Dublin, which officials have closed since Friday night.

There, he held a bilateral meeting with the taoiseach and delivered remarks to business leaders at US Ambassador to Ireland Edward Walsh’s residence.

The president’s meetings with Irish political leaders will touch on bilateral economic cooperation, creating business opportunities for US industry, and discussing international issues of mutual interest, a White House official told CNN.

Protests of Trump’s visit

Trump’s visit presents a tricky balancing act for the Irish government. On the one hand, US companies, many of whom have their European headquarters in Ireland, are hugely important for the country’s economy. On the other, Trump remains unpopular with much of the Irish public.

Thousands of people joined an anti-Trump march through central Dublin on Saturday afternoon, several of them waving Palestinian flags.

“We don’t want him here,” Eudie Moriarty from County Clare told CNN. “We respect the president of America always. But not this president.”

Protests also took place in Doonbeg, the village in the west of Ireland where Trump’s golf course is located, and at Shannon Airport.

Anti-war activist groups have held demonstrations at the airport over the years protesting the US military’s use of the facility as a refueling stop for its troops, and then-President Ronald Reagan’s visit to Ireland in 1984 was also marked by protests.

Asked about the planned protests against his visit in Ireland, Trump said he was unaware of them.

“I didn’t know there was a protest,” Trump said. “It can’t be a very big one, because we’ve been all over Ireland today already,” though he had just landed in Dublin a couple of hours prior.

CNN photojournalist William Bonnett captured a small group of about 20 to 30 protesters in Doonbeg and Shannon on Saturday morning. One woman held a sign that read, “We do not like you here nor there. We do not like you ANYWHERE!”

After wrapping up his meetings in Dublin, Trump will head west on Sunday to his Doonbeg course, where he will attend the Irish Open tournament.

His son Eric Trump told Irish national broadcaster RTÉ that the golf course is the largest employer in the local area.

“Go down to Morrissey’s tavern in Doonbeg and hear from a real Irish person as to whether or not they like President Trump and the Trump family,” he said. “Go have them attest to what we’ve done for the country and what we’ve invested in the country and the love and respect that our family has always shown them.”

Connolly was among those who protested Trump’s visit in 2019 before she was elected to the ceremonial position of Ireland’s president in 2025. She was extremely critical of Trump during that campaign, describing him as “somebody who armed and funded genocide.” For his part, Trump referred to Connolly as a “he” in March when asked by an Irish reporter about her comments about “violations of international law” in the Middle East.

“Look, he’s lucky I exist, that’s all I can say,” Trump said. “If you’re gonna allow countries that are sick and demented — and they are demented — to have nuclear weapons, everybody in the whole world should be very thankful.”

If there was any tension between Connolly and Trump, he didn’t hint at it, calling her “terrific” during his remarks at the embassy later. In a statement released by her office, Connolly took a slightly more forceful course, saying she “conveyed the strong view of the Irish people that the normalization of war and genocide can never be accepted.”

While Trump said he hates “what’s happening with Europe” on immigration and trade, he gave effusive praise to the people of Ireland, one of two European Union countries where English is listed as one of the official languages, with somewhat of a backhanded compliment about their toughness.

“People love coming to Ireland. You know why? Because they love you. They love the people. There’s a friendliness. There’s, uh, there’s also a vicious and a toughness,” Trump said. “Let me tell you, you are some of the most vicious bastards I’ve ever (seen). But when you want to be nice, there’s nobody nicer.”

This story has been updated with additional developments.

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that English is the official language in two European Union countries.

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