Trump Doubles Down on United Ireland Remarks, Calls Them 'Fairly Routine'
US President Donald Trump has repeated his support for a united Ireland, telling reporters at his golf resort in County Clare that it would be "natural" to bring Ireland and Northern Ireland "together".
He described his earlier remarks on the subject as "a fairly routine comment".
The president is on the second day of a visit to Ireland, which he is spending at Trump International Golf Links in Doonbeg, where the Irish Open is being played. He spoke after watching the tournament leader, Irish golfer Shane Lowry, tee off.
On Saturday, at a meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin in Dublin, Mr Trump had told reporters he would "love to see" a united Ireland.
Why the question is sensitive
Northern Ireland has been part of the United Kingdom since the partition of Ireland in 1921. Under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, the region's constitutional status can change only if a majority of its people vote for it in a referendum, often called a border poll.
The agreement allows the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to call such a referendum if it appears likely that a majority would favour a united Ireland. The principle that any change must rest on the consent of the people of Northern Ireland is central to the settlement that ended three decades of conflict.
Unionist parties in Northern Ireland generally oppose any change in the region's status without such consent. Nationalist parties have long campaigned for a united Ireland and have argued that Britain's exit from the European Union has strengthened their case.
The wider context
Successive US administrations have generally treated the constitutional future of Northern Ireland as a matter for the people of Ireland and Northern Ireland to decide. The United States played a facilitating role in the peace process, with Senator George Mitchell chairing the multi-party talks that produced the 1998 agreement.
Remarks by a sitting US president on the question are therefore closely watched, particularly amid continuing debate over how Brexit has affected border arrangements on the island. No formal change in US policy has been announced.
Mr Trump's comments came during a visit that has mixed official engagements in Dublin with time at his own golf property in County Clare. He watched part of the Irish Open on Sunday before speaking to the press.
It is not unusual for visiting American leaders to be asked about Northern Ireland, but direct presidential comments on reunification have historically been rare, with most US officials sticking to the language of the Good Friday Agreement and the consent principle.
The Taoiseach's office has not issued a formal response to the Sunday remarks. The visit continues, with the president expected to return to the United States shortly.
