(AFP) – Donald Trump turned his focus Sunday to golf and promoting his business interests, as he wraps up a two-day visit to Ireland during which his off-the-cuff diplomacy has caused another stir. The US president caught his Irish hosts and the neighbouring UK off-guard Saturday when he waded into highly sensitive political territory by announcing he would “love to see” a united Ireland. Breaking with Washington’s traditional neutrality on the historically charged topic, Trump argued reunification of the Republic of Ireland and UK territory Northern Ireland — after more than a century apart — was “going to happen eventually.” “It may as well happen now,” he ventured as he met Irish prime minister Micheal Martin in Dublin, prompting pushback from pro-UK loyalists in Northern Ireland and some leading politicians in mainland Britain.
“Donald Trump is Donald Trump and the president will say and speak his mind as he sees it,” UK minister Angela Rayner told Sky News on Sunday. “But look, we’re really serious about the Good Friday Agreement,” she added, referring to the 1998 peace accords that largely ended three decades of sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland. It stipulates that a referendum on Irish unity can be held if the UK government determines a majority there is likely in favour. Republic of Ireland voters would also need to back it in a separate poll.
– Tight security –
Within hours of his surprise intervention on the issue, Trump had touched down in Doonbeg, on the country’s west coast, where his Trump Organization-owned golf course is hosting the Irish Open. The American leader will attend the tournament again Sunday — the main reason for the trip — before later departing for Washington. Roads were closed and police checkpoints installed near the resort. Around 30 people protested Trump’s visit in nearby Doonbeg village. Outside the course’s clubhouse, several curious golf fans gathered hoping to catch a glimpse of the president. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” 28-year-old Connor McGovern told AFP.
Trump is joined in the remote corner of Ireland by his two sons, Eric and Don Jr, who have managed the family business since their 80-year-old father returned to the White House last year. The former real estate magnate, who promotes its enterprises at every opportunity, told Martin that Doonbeg was “one of the greatest courses in the world.” Martin assured him at Saturday’s meeting that Doonbeg’s 784 residents were “very grateful” for the Trump Organization’s investment there after it bought the site in 2014. Some 40,000 fans are expected at the tournament over the weekend, with local hero Shane Lowry favourite to win. Trump’s attendance adds an extra layer of complexity to a security effort that is reportedly costing Ireland 20 million euros ($23 million). He could present the winner with the trophy on Sunday. The course — set among dunes on the rugged County Clare coastline — has twice been targeted by pro-Palestinian activists in the past 18 months.
– ‘Conflict of interest’ –
Police said three women — aged in their 20s, 30s, and 40s — had appeared in a western Irish court late Saturday after being arrested for separate trespass and public order offences there. Around 4,000 Irish and US security personnel were involved in the weekend-long security operation, with anti-drone technology among the measures deployed. The golf-mad president plays golf most weekends at one of his family’s US properties. He is even scheduled to host December’s G20 summit at his Miami golfing resort.
Opposition Democrats in the US have long complained that blurring the lines between his presidency and personal business interests is corrupt. According to legally required financial disclosures, Trump raked in more than $2 billion in income in 2025 — the year he returned to power — with a large portion coming from cryptocurrency activities. That compared with just over $600 million in 2024. The White House has aggressively pushed back against claims of conflicts of interest and that Trump has been using his presidency to enrich himself. The US leader has similarly dismissed criticism for accepting a new Air Force One plane gifted by Qatar — aboard which he arrived in Ireland.
“Since the Civil War, we haven’t had a president with a significant financial conflict of interest from a business enterprise,” University of Minnesota Law School professor Richard Painter told AFP. The former White House ethics lawyer warned Trump’s conduct could send the message “that the way to curry a favour with the president is to patronise his properties, do business with his companies and so forth.”
– Peter Hutchison, with Aurelia End in Dublin
© 2024 AFP
