Mexico threatens to sue Google over 'Gulf of America' name change

Mexico on Thursday threatened to sue Google over its changing the Gulf of Mexico's name to "Gulf of America" for Maps users in the United States to comply with President Donald Trump's executive order.

"We do have a dispute with Google at the moment," President Claudia Sheinbaum said at her morning news conference. "And if necessary, we will file a civil suit."

Trump signed executive orders renaming the Gulf of Mexico and reverting the name of North America's highest peak, Denali, back to Mount McKinley soon after his January 20 inauguration.

Sheinbaum argued that Trump's order referred only to the part of the continental shelf belonging to the United States.

"What we are saying to Google is: check the order that was issued by the White House and signed by President Trump. You will see that it does not refer to the entire Gulf, but to the continental shelf," she said.

Sheinbaum said Google had maintained its position even after her government sent it a letter objecting to the renaming.

"If they continue to insist, we will too," she added.

"We are even thinking of a lawsuit, because they are even naming Mexican territory, which is our continental shelf," she said.

In response to Trump, Sheinbaum has cheekily suggested calling the United States "Mexican America," pointing to a map dating back to before 1848, when one-third of her country was seized by the United States.

Google, which is part of tech giant Alphabet, said users of its Maps app outside the United States would continue to see both the original and new name for the Gulf of Mexico, as is the case for other disputed locations.

"People using Maps in the U.S. will see 'Gulf of America,' and people in Mexico will see 'Gulf of Mexico.' Everyone else will see both names," the company said.

Apple has also renamed the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America" for U.S. users of its mapping application to comply with Trump's order.

Trump's renamings also sparked criticism from Indigenous groups in Alaska, who have long advocated for maintaining the Denali name.

© Agence France-Presse