US President Donald Trump arrived in Ireland on Saturday to host the Irish Open at his luxury Doonbeg resort, using the high-profile tournament as the backdrop for an explosive diplomatic declaration in support of a "united Ireland."
The golf-mad 80-year-old billionaire touched down ahead of the weekend’s action, where around 40 000 fans are descending on County Clare to watch a star-studded field headlined by six-time Major winner and world No 2 Rory McIlroy. Trump, who purchased the coastal Doonbeg course in 2014, is expected to unabashedly promote his family’s commercial business throughout the tournament and may even present the trophy on Sunday.
However, the lines between his presidency and private interests were immediately blurred upon arrival. After a brief stop in Dublin to meet Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, Trump waded straight into one of the region's most sensitive political topics, declaring that the reunification of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland would be "a fantastic thing."
"The way I look at it, it's going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now," he said, 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 US has historically maintained strict diplomatic 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 pro-unity party Sinn Féin.
Asked about Trump's comments, a spokesperson for Downing Street referred reporters to statements Burnham made in parliament Wednesday, where he vowed to "stick to the Good Friday Agreement 100%".
However, Gavin Robinson, leader of the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party, rejected the idea on X, writing: "As unionists, we are not interested in the destruction of our country by joining with the Irish Republic."
The US president touched down at Dublin Airport shortly before 8.25am local time under one of the largest security operations ever mounted in Ireland, costing an estimated €20 million (about R390m).
At least 4 000 police and military personnel, including snipers, were deployed for the visit. Trump later inspected a military guard of honour alongside Irish President Catherine Connolly, an outspoken critic of the US leader.
"I conveyed the strong view of the Irish people that the normalisation of war and genocide can never be accepted," Connolly said in a post-meeting statement.
In Dublin, over 2 000 protesters waving Palestinian flags rallied against the visit, chanting "Donald Trump's not welcome here."
Following his political engagements in Dublin, Trump flew to his luxury golf resort in Doonbeg, County Clare, where he plans to attend the Irish Open. The trip has reignited criticism over the 80-year-old billionaire's ongoing blending of official presidential duties with private commercial interests. | AFP