Mexican President Appeals to Google over Gulf of Mexico Name Change
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has written a letter to Google, requesting the company to reconsider its decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico.
This request follows a directive from US President Donald Trump, who signed an executive order mandating the body of water to be renamed the Gulf of America during his initial week in office.
However, this new name will be applicable on Google Maps only for users located in the US, while the rest of the world will continue using the Gulf of Mexico, a name that has been in use for centuries.
There is no international body tasked with the naming of water bodies, but Mexico contends that the US cannot legally alter the Gulf’s name. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea specifies that a country’s sovereign territory extends only up to 12 nautical miles beyond its coastline.
Sheinbaum stated, "The name change could only correspond to the 12 nautical miles away from the coastlines of the United States of America."
As of now, Google has not provided a response to the BBC's request for comments.
