Trump says he would 'love' to see a united Ireland during Dublin visit

US President Donald Trump made an unexpected intervention on Irish constitutional politics at the start of a two-day visit to Ireland, saying he would "love" to see a united Ireland.

Speaking at a joint press conference with taoiseach Micheál Martin in Dublin, Trump said unification would happen eventually, so "it may as well happen now." He called it something that would be a "great feather in everybody's cap," while acknowledging the UK would have its own view on the matter.

Later that day, Trump admitted his remarks, made in response to a reporter's question, would prove controversial, but described his answer as a good one and called unification a "very cool thing."

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A Downing Street spokesperson said the prime minister still believes the level of support required to trigger a unification referendum under the Good Friday agreement has not been reached. Democratic Unionist Party leader Gavin Robinson said Northern Ireland's constitutional future would be decided by its own people, not by commentary from London, Dublin or Washington, adding he was confident the region would keep choosing to remain in the UK.

Former SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, usually a critic of Trump, responded approvingly to the comments on social media. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the remarks as reckless, comparing them to Trump's past comments about Greenland and Canada.

Trump's visit is centred mainly on golf, with the president travelling to his resort in Doonbeg, County Clare, host of the Irish Open. The trip also included a meeting with Irish president Catherine Connolly in Dublin, alongside protests against his visit.