Prior to launching legal action, Mexico stated on Monday that it is seeking a new response from Google over its demand that the tech giant completely restore the Gulf of Mexico name to its Google Maps service.
Cris Turner, Google’s vice president of government affairs and public policy, wrote a letter to her government, which President Claudia Sheinbaum released. After U.S. President Donald Trump designated the body of water the Gulf of America, it states that Google would not alter the policy it established.
At a news appearance on Monday morning, Sheinbaum stated, “We will wait for Google’s response and if not, we will proceed to court.”
Currently, the gulf is known as the Gulf of America in the United States, the Gulf of Mexico in Mexico, and the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America) in other places on Google Maps. In his letter, Turner stated that the business was willing to meet with the Mexican government in person and that it was using the Gulf of America to adhere to long-standing map policies in an impartial and consistent manner across all regions.
“It is our consistent policy to consult multiple authoritative sources to provide the most up-to-date and accurate representation of the world,” he stated, adding that international treaties and conventions are not meant to control how commercial mapping services represent geographic characteristics.
Since the United States only has jurisdiction over around 46% of the Gulf, Mexico has claimed that the mapping strategy infringes Mexican sovereignty. Cuba controls about 5% while Mexico controls 49% of the remaining portion. The United Nations recognizes the name Gulf of Mexico, which was first used in 1607.
“Under no circumstances will Mexico accept the renaming of a geographic zone within its own territory and under its jurisdiction,” the Mexican government wrote in response to Google’s letter, threatening legal action.
At a critical juncture for the neighboring allies, Trump’s renaming of the body of water has heightened tensions between the United States and Mexico.
Threats of tariffs have forced Sheinbaum to tread carefully with Trump, while Mexico and other Latin American nations have prepared for projected mass deportations, the full impact of which has not yet been realized.
In addition to the legal threat against Google, the Mexican president said Monday that high-level consultations on commerce and security will be held this week between Mexico and the United States in an attempt to uphold a long-term strategy of cooperation between the two nations.
Mexico aims to avert a more serious geopolitical crisis in the most recent round of negotiations between the two nations.
Conflict within the United States has also been exacerbated by the water body’s renaming.
The White House denied Associated Press reporters access to a number of events last week, including some held in the Oval Office, citing the news organization’s name policy as the reason. While accepting Trump’s renaming of the Gulf of Mexico, the AP is using it to make sure that the names of geographical features are globally identifiable.
Similar to the AP, other news outlets have expressed concern over infringement of press freedom, including the New York Times and the White House Correspondents’ Organization.
The Associated Press
