The Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that he has discussed a united Ireland with the US President Donald Trump any time they have met.
Martin said that he always explained the peace process that lead to the Good Friday Agreement and the work needed to achieve Irish unity.
During Trumps visit to Ireland over the weekend, he said that he would "love" to see a united Ireland.
He said that he doesn't want to "cause any problems," "But I will tell you, I'd love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides. You know what? The way I look at it, it's going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now."
Speaking on RTE's Today with David McCullagh, Martina said: "I genuinely believe we need to focus on the issue of legacy as part of the path forward and this is something I will discuss with the British PM when we meet."
Martin said addressing the legacy of the Troubles would represent a major breakthrough for victims and their families, adding that it would create an obligation for everyone to cooperate with the new commission.
He said the initiative would aim to provide closure for all families who suffered during that period.
"And in my view, I would say, in terms of any future on the island of Ireland, it has to be founded under three sets of relationships that give rise to the Good Friday Agreement: the British-Irish; the North-South; and the two traditions within Northern Ireland. And whatever happens in terms of the future constitutional configuration, those elements would still have to be part of that, in my view," Martin said.
"I believe a lot has to happen in terms of reconciliation on this island and I worry that some of the rhetoric, even from Sinn Féin at times, is harking back to the 1970s and digging trenches," he added.
Mr Martin said he does not believe there is a “generosity of spirit” towards dealing with the legacy of the Troubles from Sinn Féin.
"Well, they would say that they're harking forward to the next generation. They're not. They're digging trenches, like that's how I see it, because I don't sense that generosity of spirit," Martin said.
Speaking on the same programme earlier, Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald said the “hard yards” of preparing for Irish unity must begin now. She reiterated her call for discussions on preparation, dialogue and inclusion to take place ahead of any potential future referendum.
"This transition from a partition to [a] united Ireland has to be absolutely peaceful. It has to be democratic. It has to be. It has to include all shades of opinion, from all across the spectrum, right across our island, including voices from unionism and loyalism, and that's not just going to happen by chance," she said.
"The Government in Dublin needs to be very front-footed from here on in, in shaping and clearing the space for that democratic conversation," she added.
