Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday stated Google is mistaken to vary the identify of the Gulf of Mexico on its Google Maps platform after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the physique of water be renamed the “Gulf of America.”
Sheinbaum introduced a letter addressed to Google by which her authorities argues the U.S. can not unilaterally change the identify of a physique of water which it shares with Cuba and Mexico.
The transfer comes after Google stated on Monday that Google Maps will change the identify of the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” for U.S. customers as soon as it’s formally up to date within the U.S. Geographic Names System.
The change might be seen within the U.S., however the identify will stay “Gulf of Mexico” in Mexico. Exterior of the 2 international locations, customers will see each names on Google Maps.
Sheinbaum and Trump have sparred over the identify change, with the Mexican president beforehand joking that if the international locations have been beginning to rename issues then maybe North America ought to be referred to as “Mexican America” after a map of the area from 1607.
Based on Mexico, the U.S. can not legally change the Gulf’s identify as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Legislation of the Sea dictates that a person nation’s sovereign territory solely extends as much as 12 nautical miles (about 22 kilometres) out from the shoreline.
“The identify change might solely correspond to the 12 nautical miles away from the coastlines of the US of America,” Sheinbaum stated as she learn the letter in her common morning press convention.
Sheinbaum added that Mexico had requested Google to prominently show the map of Mexican America.
“We ask that while you put Mexican America within the search engine, the map seems that we introduced.”
