Irish leaders react after Trump says he'd 'love' to see a unified Ireland

Following his arrival in Dublin on Saturday, President Donald Trump sparked controversy among leaders in Northern Ireland by expressing a desire to see the end of a divided Ireland. After meeting with Irish President Catherine Connolly and Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Trump told reporters that he would "love to see" the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland unified, calling the potential move "fantastic." He stated that "the way I look at it, it's going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now."

The partition between Northern Ireland, predominantly Protestant and under British rule for centuries, and the largely Catholic Irish Republic occurred in 1921. Troubles between the British and Irish escalated in the late 1960s, but ended in 1998 following the approval of the Good Friday Agreement. This agreement enacted constitutional changes and disarmed paramilitary groups, with Northern Ireland remaining part of the U.K. until a majority of its citizens approved unification in a referendum.

Northern Ireland's constitutional future, however, is determined by the people of Northern Ireland, according to Democratic Unionist Party leader Gavin Robinson. He stated that "Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom because that is the settled democratic will of its people." Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows also shared a similar sentiment, emphasizing that "Northern Ireland not a pawn in Trump's fallout with the UK. Our constitutional future does not depend on him or any other foreign dignitary."

U.K. Prime Minister Andrea Burnham had previously stated that a unity vote was "off the table," and a spokesperson for the prime minister reiterated this stance, stating that Burnham's position remains unchanged. Despite opposition, Trump acknowledged the controversy during an event at the U.S. Embassy in Ireland, stating that he gave a "nice answer" and suggesting that the matter could be addressed in the future.

Protesters demonstrated against Trump during his two-day visit in Dublin, where he attended a golf tournament at one of his resorts.