Donald Trump says he plans to visit Ireland later this year

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US president Donald Trump has said that he will visit Ireland this year.

As is the norm on the St. Patrick's weekend, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is in the White House for the regular meeting. While speaking to the press, Trump mentioned his property in Doonbeg, Clare and said that he plans on visiting Ireland.

“I will be coming at some point this year. I missed it last year, and I would have loved to have been there. It’s a special place and I have a very warm spot for Doonbeg, I will tell you that. It is just a great place,” he said.

The US president also elaborated on the relationship that he's developing with Varadkar.

This is the second time that the Fine Gael leader has visited the Oval Office and Trump stated that he's becoming "fast friends" with the Taoiseach.

“It is really great to have the prime minister of Ireland with us,” Trump said, before stating that he's becoming “fast friends” with the Taoiseach.

The US president also discussed Varadkar's reputation in Ireland and said that: “The people love him – that’s very important".

With regards to the topic of Brexit, Trump was non-comital and refused to provide a hardline stance.

“I’m not going to comment on Brexit. I can tell you it’s a very complex thing that’s going on now. It’s tearing the country apart, it’s tearing a lot of countries apart. It is a shame that it has to be that way. It wasn’t that I was a supporter (Leave), I predicted that it was going to happen,” he said.

Trump did state his belief that Varadkar is now in a  "complicated position" due to Brexit and stated his belief that the EU has treated the US "very unfairly" over the years.