The president of the United States, Donald Trump, has arrived this Saturday in Ireland for a 48-hour visit marked by protests and by the strong differences between Washington and Dublin in foreign policy, especially regarding the war with Iran and the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Trump has landed in Dublin, where he has been received by the Irish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Simon Harris, before starting an agenda that includes meetings with the president of the country, Catherine Connolly, and with the prime minister, Micheál Martin. He will later travel to Doonbeg, in County Clare, to attend the Irish Open, which takes place at a golf complex owned by his family. The visit does not have the character of an official state trip.
Protests in Dublin and Doonbeg
Trump's presence has prompted the calling of several demonstrations under slogans such as “No Welcome for Trump”, driven by pacifist organizations, pro-Palestinian groups, and opposition parties.
The Irish Neutrality League expects a large mobilization in Dublin, while protests have also been organized in Doonbeg and in the vicinity of Shannon Airport. Sinn Féin has publicly supported the mobilizations and has called on Connolly and Martin to directly raise their disagreements with Trump regarding U.S. policy in the Middle East.
The campaign against the visit began even before Air Force One landed. This week, a huge inscription appeared on a beach in Dublin Bay with the message “NO KINGS – GAZA IRAN ICE”, a protest against the foreign and immigration policy of the U.S. Administration.
The Irish authorities have deployed a strong security apparatus with the participation of the Garda, the Defense Forces, the U.S. Secret Service, and specialized units in public order, intelligence, and anti-drone systems. There have also been closures and traffic restrictions around the airport, Phoenix Park, and other points in the capital.
Iran, one of the most delicate issues
One of the topics that will likely be on the table will be the war with Iran, at a time when the conflict continues to have international and economic consequences.
Trump arrives in Ireland as the evolution of the war and the increase in energy prices generate concern both in Europe and in the United States. The relationship with Iran is among the issues that Micheál Martin is expected to raise during his meeting with the U.S. president, along with Ukraine, trade relations, and tariffs.
The issue is particularly sensitive in Ireland due to its traditional defense of military neutrality and the rejection that certain political and social sectors have shown towards U.S. military intervention in the Middle East.
The Israeli settlements, another point of friction
The visit also coincides with one of the biggest disagreements between Ireland and the United States regarding Israel.
The Irish Parliament has approved legislation that prohibits the importation of products from Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, a measure signed into law by President Catherine Connolly on July 23.
The effective entry into force is scheduled for next Tuesday, just two days after Trump leaves Ireland. The rule will make the commercial importation of goods originating from those settlements a crime.
The Irish position contrasts with the strong support of the Trump Administration for the Israeli government, and the groups organizing the protests have made Gaza, the West Bank, and the violence of settlers some of their main arguments against the visit.
In recent years, Ireland has positioned itself among the most critical European countries regarding the expansion of settlements and more favorable to increasing economic pressure on Israel for its policy in the occupied territories.
A particularly delicate meeting with Catherine Connolly
One of the meetings with the greatest political weight will be the one Trump holds with Catherine Connolly at Áras an Uachtaráin, the presidential residence.
Connolly, an independent and politically situated on the left, has been a regular critic of Trump and various U.S. foreign policy decisions. She participated in protests during the Republican's visit to Ireland in 2019 and has maintained particularly critical positions regarding U.S. policy in the Middle East.
His meeting with Trump has been officially presented as a courtesy visit and not as a formal political meeting, since the Irish presidential office has mainly representative functions. Nevertheless, the appointment has generated great expectation due to the public differences between the two.
Ireland tries to balance criticism with its economic relationship with the US
Despite the political differences, the Irish Government has a strong incentive to avoid an open confrontation. The economic relationship between Ireland and the United States is extraordinarily close: American multinationals have a decisive weight in sectors such as technology and pharmaceuticals and employ approximately one in ten workers in the country.
The possible tariff policies of Trump particularly worry Dublin, due to Ireland's strong dependence on American investment and pharmaceutical exports.
Micheál Martin will thus try to maintain a difficult balance: defend the Irish position on the Middle East without deteriorating an economic relationship that is strategic for the country.
From political meetings to the golf course
After completing his commitments in Dublin, Trump will move to Doonbeg, where his Trump International Golf Links complex is hosting the Irish Open this weekend.
The American president plans to stay there overnight on Saturday and participate on Sunday in the final events of the tournament, including the trophy presentation. His presence has once again generated criticism due to the combination of presidential activity and a visit to a business owned by his family.
The visit thus summarizes the complex current relationship between the two countries. Trump arrives in an Ireland that maintains close economic ties with the United States but has deep differences with his Administration on some of the main international conflicts, while protests transfer those discrepancies from the offices to the streets of Dublin and Clare.