It comes after the Gulf of Mexico faced a name change
President Donald Trump is making more controversial decisions over in Washington, and as the Commander-in-Chief continues to throw his weight around, it seems no country is safe from being renamed.
While Donald Trump‘s first presidency is remembered for divisive moves like him trying to build a wall across the Mexican border, it seems his second term will be remembered for him renaming places on Google Maps.
Although only those in America will see the Gulf of Mexico rebranded as the Gulf of America on map systems, it’s still a thorn in the side of Mexico. Despite the President of Mexico decrying the move and Mexico even filing a lawsuit against America, the name is sticking for now.
There were even fears that Trump was trying to amalgamate Canada into the United States, and while the Great White North is safe for now, Trump has seemingly set his eyes on somewhere else in the world.
President Trump has now set his sights on the Perisan Gulf (Google)
According to The Guardian, the POTUS plans to announce that the Gulf of Persia will be renamed the Gulf of Arabia or the Arabian Gulf while on his upcoming trip to Saudi Arabia.
Iranian leaders are sharing their outrage, with the move coming at a troubled time when talks are ongoing over the Iranian nuclear program.
Discussing the Gulf of Arabia naming, one diplomat said: “If Trump went ahead with the proposal he would manage to unite every Iranian, pro- or anti-regime, against him, and that is a near impossible achievement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also chimed in about the ‘absurd’ rumor and said he hoped it was disinformation. According to Araghchi, the name of Middle East waterways did “not imply ownership by any particular nation, but rather reflects a shared respect for the collective heritage of humanity.”
He continued: “The name Persian Gulf, like many geographical designations, is deeply rooted in human history. Iran has never objected to the use of names such as the Sea of Oman, Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea or Red Sea.”
Araghchi said that politically motivated attempts to change the name of the Persian Gulf are “indicative of hostile intent toward Iran and its people, and are firmly condemned.”
Referring to it as an “affront to all Iranians,” he concluded: “Any shortsighted step in this connection will have no validity or legal or geographical effect, it will only bring the wrath of all Iranians from all walks of life and political persuasion in Iran, the US and across the world.”
It comes as Iran and the US try to broker a deal on their nuclear futures (Anna Moneymaker / Staff / Getty)
Although some Arab nations have been calling for a change, Iran has kept its ties to the historic name that dates back to the 16th century.
While both the Gulf of Arabia and Arabian Gulf are used in many Middle Eastern countries, the Iranian government previously threatened to sue Google in 2012 after it failed to include the Gulf of Persia on all its maps.
As a deal between the US and Iran simmers over the nuclear program, European diplomats have urged Iranian leaders not to ‘lose it’ over Trump’s threat.
Vice President JD Vance spoke at the Munich Security Conference event in Washington, and seemed optimistic about the future as he cheered: “Our proposition is simple: we don’t care if people want nuclear power. They can have civil nuclear power. We don’t mind that. But you can’t have the kind of enrichment programme that allows you to get to a nuclear weapon and that’s where we draw the line.”
