Key updatesTrump visit explainer: Traffic restrictions for Dublin Airport, Shannon Airport, M50, Phoenix Park and what to know about protestsEric Trump hails ‘family friend’ Rory McIlroy as he arrives in Doonbeg for Irish Open ahead of his fatherKeeping it in the family: Everything you need to know about Trump’s wives, children, siblings and parentsTaoiseach braced for high-stakes Oval Office-style encounter with Donald Trump one minute agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump has arrived at the US Ambassador’s residence in the Phoenix Park
A crowd of invited guests, including politicians and business leaders, is awaiting the US President’s arrival.Irish Independent 3 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
Donald Trump raises the Falkland Islands with the Taoiseach during their meeting
US President Donald Trump said a conflict between the UK and Argentina over the Falkland Islands would be a “potential disaster”, telling reporters in Dublin he would be “able to settle it” if he was called in to help.
Press Association 5 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump said that he would “love” to see Ireland unified and that “it may as well happen now” as it is “going to happen eventually”.
Speaking while sitting alongside Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Mr Trump said: “Well, I don’t want to cause any problems, but I will tell you I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides, great people.
“I’d love to see it unified. I think it would be a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually,” he said.
“You know what? The way I look at it, it’s going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now. We’re talking about it and you got the right man over here to get it moving.
“But, yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing. Now the UK will have something to say about it, obviously. But I think it would be a great thing. I mean, how can it be bad?”
Maeve McTaggartREUTERS/Kylie Cooper 7 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
Pictures: Taoiseach Micheál Martin and the US President Donald Trump meet
Ben Birchall/PA Wire Ben Birchall/PA Wire 9 minutes agoGareth O’ConnorUS President Donald Trump has now finished his meeting with the Taoiseach Micheál Martin
Donald Trump has now left Farmleigh House and is on his way to the nearby US ambassador’s residence in the Phoenix Park where he is expected to give a speech.
Gareth O’Connor
Ben Birchall/PA Wire 13 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump has said “prices will tumble” if the UK opens up the North Sea for oil and gas drilling
Mr Trump was responding to a question shouted by a reporter about an increase in home heating oil costs in Ireland since the Iran war.
Speaking outside the Áras an Uachtaráin, Mr Trump said: “Well, I think what happens if they open up, if you opened up in the UK, the North Sea, your prices will tumble.
“As soon as they open up the great North Sea, and they haven’t, one of the most valuable sites in the world, when that’s open your prices are going to go way down.”
Press Association 16 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump has said protests against his visit “can’t be a very big one”
Asked how he felt about the protests being held against his Irish visit, Mr Trump said “it can’t be a very big one” because he had not heard or seen them and he had “been all over Ireland” already today. Mr Trump landed in Dublin Airport this morning and then made the around 30-minute journey to Phoenix Park along closed roads.
He said the Irish-US economic relationship is one that is “more profitable” for Ireland than the US.
His meeting with Ms Connolly was described as a “constructive conversation”, which included discussions of energy. He said it was a brief and positive meeting where many things were discussed, such as Northern Ireland.
“We discussed a lot of things. A lot of very positive things. We have a very positive trade relationship with Ireland.”
Mr Trump did not answer whether Ms Connolly raised the issue of Gaza with him.
He confirmed he will return to Ireland for the Ryder Cup.
Asked about Irish reunification, Mr Trump said he would “love to see it unified” and he sees a United Ireland is “going to happen eventually”.
“I think it would be a fantastic thing. The UK would have something to say about it,” he said, asking how it could be a negative thing.
Maeve McTaggart 18 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
Donald Trump is “very much looking forward” to visiting his golf resort in Doonbeg, Tánaiste Simon Harris said.
Mr Harris greeted the US president at Dublin Airport on Saturday and told reporters he was “pleased to be here on behalf of the Irish Government to welcome the President of the United States to Ireland”.
“He’s very much looking forward to getting to Doonbeg,” he added.
“He’s a man who obviously loves golf, and he’s very proud of his Doonbeg resort and is looking forward to getting down there.”
Mr Harris said it is Mr Trump’s grandchildren’s first time in Ireland, adding that he knows there is “great personal excitement in relation to that”.
He added: “Also, some of the president’s most senior staff, including Monica Crowley, his chief of protocol at the White House, hailed with very significant Cork links as well.
“Alongside the politics, alongside some of the pageantry of a US president arriving in Ireland, there’s also a reminder of those deep interpersonal links between our two countries.”
Press Association 20 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump has said he would like to see ‘Ireland unified’
Donald Trump made the comment as he met the Taoiseach in front of the media at Farmleigh House.
Gareth O’Connor 24 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump says the Iran war will end ‘very soon’
Donald Trump has told reporters in Dublin that oil prices will fall when the conflict with Iran ends.
The US President also said the Houthis in Yemen “don’t want to fight”.
His comments come as the Iran-backed Houthis made significant advances along the Red Sea Coast, which is a key trade and oil supply route.
Gareth O’Connor 25 minutes agoSeoirse Mulgrew
For Micheál Martin, this meeting with Donald Trump is a case of ‘been there, done that’
The Taoiseach is a skilled Trump whisperer by now, having met him twice already in Washington as part of Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations.
He has shown an ability to steer the conversation when needed, and sit back and listen when that is the wiser thing to do.
Mr Martin has also been able to push back at Trump – notably when he criticised the then British Prime Minister Keir Starmer last March.
This time, Martin is not in the Lion’s Den of the Oval Office – Trump is on his patch in the sumptuous setting of Farmleigh House – the old residence of the Guinness estate in the Phoenix Park.
He has made a warm start, remembering the victims of 9/11 and highlighting the sporting links between both countries. He is also reminding him of the Irish role in American independence.
For the Taoiseach, the main objective is to keep the strong Irish-US relationship intact – despite many pressures – while also outlining concerns of the Irish people on Gaza and the objectives of the EU when it comes to Ukraine.
Mary Regan 29 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
Taoiseach Micheál Martin and US President Trump are holding a joint meeting
Mr Martin has told the US President that the thoughts of the Irish people are with the United States on the week of the 25th anniversary of 9/11. He has also referenced the World Cup, the golf in Doonbeg, the importance of the economic relationship between the two countries and the historical links.
Mr Trump said the Irish Open is a hugely significant event and has praised Shane Lowry and Rory McIroy. He described Doonbeg as “One of the greatest golf courses in the world.” He said the US-Irish relationship has never been stronger than it is now.Asked when the war in Iran will end, Mr Trump said: “Very soon”. The price of oil will also come “tumbling down” when it does.
Maeve McTaggart 30 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
According to the White House press pool, the questions Mr Trump answered outside the Áras related to the Strait of Hormuz and Irish energy prices.
He told reporters that “it will all work out fine” in response to the first shouted question about the Strait of Hormuz.
Asked about an increase in home heating oil costs in Ireland since the Iran war, he said: “Well, I think what happens if they open up, if you opened up in the UK, the North Sea, your prices will tumble.“As soon as they open up the great North Sea, and they haven’t, one of the most valuable sites in the world, when that’s open, your prices are going to go way down.”
Maeve McTaggart 31 minutes agoGareth O’Connor
US President Donald Trump is due to speak at the US Ambassador’s Residence later
An interesting observation from Fianna Fáil TD James O’Connor at the residence where Donald Trump is due to make his only speech during his visit: “There’s no teleprompter!”
Around 300 invited guests, mostly business and political figures, are gathered in a tent in the residency gardens.
Kevin Doyle 34 minutes agoGareth O’Connor