DUBLIN, Ireland — President Donald Trump said Saturday that a unified Ireland would be “fantastic,” expressing support for the reunification of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland during a visit to Dublin.
Trump made the remarks during a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin after a reporter asked about Irish reunification.
“I don’t want to cause any problems but I’d love to see it unified,” Trump said. “It’s going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now.”
Trump acknowledged that the United Kingdom would have a role in the issue and later told business leaders that there was “no good answer” to the question of reunification.
Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom and has a Protestant majority. Nationalists, most of whom are Catholic, generally support unification with the Republic of Ireland, while unionists largely support remaining part of the U.K.
Decades of conflict over Northern Ireland’s status, known as the Troubles, largely ended with the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. The agreement allows a referendum on Irish unity if it appears likely that a majority would support reunification.
U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Wednesday that the British government would consider a referendum only when public opinion changes enough to warrant one. His office referred to those remarks when asked about Trump’s comments.
Trump also discussed the Falkland Islands during his visit, questioning whether Britain could retake the territory if Argentina attempted to seize it again.
“I’m sure I’ll be called into that potential disaster, but if they do, I’ll probably be able to settle, settle it out,” Trump said.
Trump also met Irish President Catherine Connolly, who had criticized him in the past and joined protests during his 2019 visit to Ireland.
Connolly said she told Trump that the Irish people oppose the normalization of war and genocide. She also gave him several gifts, including a collection from late Irish poet Michael Longley.
Trump described the meeting as “very nice.”
Thousands of people later joined a protest in central Dublin as Trump traveled to his golf course in Doonbeg on Ireland’s Atlantic coast. Demonstrators waved Irish and Palestinian flags and chanted against Trump and the Irish government.
Trump’s son Eric defended the family’s presence in Ireland, saying the Doonbeg golf course is the area’s largest employer.
Trump attended the Irish Open during his visit and said he would return to Ireland next year for the Ryder Cup.