Mexico could file suit against Google for 'Gulf of Mexico' name change
World
Google changed the name for US users of Google Maps to reflect the decision by President Trump
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has urged Google to reconsider its decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America" for US users, adding the country could file a civil suit against the firm if necessary.
Google changed the name for US users of Google Maps to reflect the decision by the government of US President Donald Trump to rename the Gulf of Mexico.
Sheinbaum has repeatedly decried the move, arguing the "Gulf of Mexico" name has long been recognised internationally. On Thursday, the leader said Google had not resolved Mexico's earlier complaints.
She urged Google to review the decree from the White House, arguing "the only place it was effective was where (the US) has sovereignty, or up to 22 nautical miles from the coast."
For users of Google Maps in Mexico, the gulf's name remains the "Gulf of Mexico." Outside of the two countries, users see both names on Google Maps.
If Google holds its ground on the name, Mexico could take to the courts, Sheinbaum said.
"If necessary we will file a civil suit," she added. "Our legal area is already looking into what that would mean, but we hope that (Google) reconsiders."
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A dispute also arose in the US when the White House barred an Associated Press reporter and photographer from boarding the presidential airplane Friday for a weekend trip with Donald Trump, saying the news agency’s stance on how to refer to the Gulf of Mexico was to blame for the exclusion.
AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton said Friday night the body of water in question has been called the Gulf of Mexico for hundreds of years. AP, whose influential stylebook is used by news outlets as an arbiter of language and usage, advised that because of its broad set of global customers, it would both refer to the body of water as the Gulf of Mexico and also reference Trump’s order changing the name to the Gulf of America within the United States.
