Irish authorities and political leaders face a week of high-stakes diplomacy and security as US President Donald Trump begins a two-day visit that opens with a courtesy call to President Catherine Connolly and a planned meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Trump arrived in Dublin after boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews on Friday night, and was greeted at Dublin Airport by Tánaiste Simon Harris and Foreign Minister Helen McEntee.
Officials said the president will take part in events at the US Ambassador's residence in Phoenix Park before travelling to County Clare to attend the Amgen Irish Open at Trump International Golf Links and Hotel Doonbeg, a property he owns. His sons Eric and Donald Trump Junior are expected to accompany him in Doonbeg. Trump has visited the Republic previously in 2019 and returned in 2023; he has signalled his interest in the Irish Open in public remarks, saying in a July video message that there is "nothing better than Irish-American friendship" and praising the Doonbeg course as "one of the best, most beautiful golf courses anywhere in the world."
The meeting at Áras an Uachtaráin comes with domestic pressure for President Connolly to raise the conflict in Gaza with the US leader. Connolly, described in public records as an outspoken Gaza activist who has criticised US policy and said Trump is acting "like a bully" over tariffs, has been urged by Sinn Féin and other parties that supported her presidency campaign to press the issue during the brief encounter. Ireland is noted in diplomatic commentary as among the European Union's more pro-Palestinian countries and has faced criticism from Israel for that stance.
Authorities have planned what officials describe as one of the largest security operations in the state's history to manage demonstrations expected in Dublin and a separate protest scheduled for Doonbeg. A small number of crowd-control barriers have been placed near the American Embassy in central Dublin, although Trump is not due to visit that site. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he looked forward to discussing matters of mutual interest and reaffirming economic and cultural ties, and that he expected a reception at the American Embassy before Trump travelled to watch the Irish Open.
What happens next is a compact diplomatic timetable: the meeting with Mr Martin on Saturday morning, the embassy reception and then travel to Doonbeg for the Irish Open, all under the shadow of planned protests and heightened security. The visit will test how Irish institutions balance formal engagements with public demonstrations and the presence of a foreign leader who owns property in the country he is visiting.
