Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has formally asked Google to reconsider renaming the Gulf of Mexico on its U.S. maps to the “Gulf of America,” following an executive order signed by President Donald Trump.
While Google Maps will apply the change only for users in the United States, Mexico argues that the U.S. has no legal authority to unilaterally rename an internationally recognized body of water.
Mexico pushes back
In a letter sent to Google, Sheinbaum criticized the renaming, stating that under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, sovereign territory extends only 12 nautical miles from a country’s coastline. She argued that the U.S. can only apply such a name change within its territorial waters—not across the entire Gulf.
“[The name change] could only correspond to the 12 nautical miles away from the coastlines of the United States of America,” Sheinbaum asserted.
Despite the controversy, Google has defended its decision, stating: “We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.”
Google also confirmed that the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico will only be visible to U.S. users, while internationally, it will retain its traditional name. The company added that another Trump-mandated change—the renaming of Mount Denali back to Mount McKinley—will also appear on U.S. maps.
A political jab from Mexico
Sheinbaum, who has been vocal in opposing the change, joked about requesting Google to rename North America as “América Mexicana” or label certain U.S. territories as “Mexican America” in response.
“For us, it is still the Gulf of Mexico, and for the entire world, it is still the Gulf of Mexico,” she quipped.
What happens next?
Mexico is expected to raise the issue with international bodies, and Google may face pressure from diplomatic and geographic organizations to reconsider its implementation. For now, the controversy adds to already tense relations between Mexico and the Trump administration, particularly over sovereignty and territorial identity.
