LONDON, March 10, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Irish premier Micheal Martin said on Monday he will visit Washington this week for talks with US President Donald Trump about the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Martin said he would meet with Trump on Wednesday "at a moment of great peril for the world", in comments quoted by British news agency the Press Association.

Trump has raised concerns among European and world leaders through his high-pressure tactics to push for settlements to the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.

"I look forward to discussing with President Trump how Ireland, together with our EU partners, can work with him and his administration to end conflict and to secure peace, whether in the Middle East or in Ukraine," Martin was quoted as saying.

He said the talks would also cover economic and political links between the United States and Ireland, which have deep historical and cultural ties.

He noted that real estate magnate Trump owns a golf club at Doonbeg in western Ireland.

Martin said he would travel first to Austin, Texas, before heading to Washington ahead of Saint Patrick's Day, March 17.

The Irish national holiday is traditionally celebrated with a reception at the White House, and this year the event has been scheduled early on March 12.

Mary Lou McDonald, leader of the left-wing Irish republican party Sinn Fein, said in February she would not join the reception this year in protest at Trump's proposal to expel inhabitants from Gaza in a plan to settle the Israel-Hamas conflict there.

Dublin is also reportedly concerned that Trump could harm its economy by lowering taxes on big US companies, drawing them away from Ireland where many currently enjoy low rates, and through trade tariffs.