Mexico’s Sheinbaum Threatens to Sue Google Over ‘Gulf of America’ Maps Change

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum threatened a civil lawsuit against Google for renaming the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America on its maps service following an executive order Donald Trump signed after taking office.

Sheinbaum insisted Thursday that Alphabet Inc.’s Google was incorrect to rename the body of water on their mapping service, arguing that Trump’s executive order could only pertain to the continental shelf within US territory. [Editor’s note: In other global regions, Google is listing the body of water as “Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America).”]

“Who we have a dispute with is Google,” Sheinbaum said at her morning press conference, adding that her government has exchanged letters with the company on the subject. “If they keep insisting, we’ll consider a lawsuit.”

Google made the switch early this week after the US government updated its official map with the new name. Apple Inc. said Tuesday that it would make the change in its Maps app as well.

Sheinbaum, who thanked the Encyclopedia Britannica for sticking with Gulf of Mexico, said that while Google is a private company that could make its own decisions, she hoped there would be a review.

Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sheinbaum did not mention Apple during the press conference, and her office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about whether her government had discussed the change with the company.

Photograph: Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum; photo credit: Mauricio Palos/Bloomberg

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