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US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (local time) said the renaming of Lake Ontario to Lake America was complete, ratified, and binding after Apple Maps updated the name for users in the United States, following a similar change by Google Maps.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called the name change "very important". Apple Maps has just announced that it has changed the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America, so now that very important change of names, between Google Maps and Apple Maps, is complete, ratified, and binding. Thank you for your attention to this matter! his post read. Apple's change follows direct lobbying by Trump and makes it the second major US-based technology company to adopt the new name for users in the United States. Google Maps had changed the name for US users on Saturday following the US Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) formally changing the lake's name in the United States. Since we update Google Maps to reflect name changes in official government sources, which is GNIS for the U.S., people using Maps in the U.S. will see 'Lake America'; those in Canada will continue to see 'Lake Ontario,' Google said in a statement. Google added that users outside the US and Canada would see both names, with Lake America appearing in parentheses after Lake Ontario", in line with its long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country". The move follows an executive order signed by Trump directing the US Department of the Interior to update federal maps and databases to refer to Lake Ontario as Lake America within the United States following a massive fallout due to a trade war. However, the US executive order applies to American federal mapping agencies and does not have authority over Canadian territory or international hydrographic standards. Lake Ontario is shared by Canada and the United States and is governed by the Boundary Waters Treaty. The renaming has faced strong opposition in Canada. Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled a large sign along the Canadian shore of the lake reading Lake Ontario. Now and Always in English and French. I'm here on the shores of beautiful Lake Ontario, a crown jewel of our province and our country, Ford said in a video message posted on X. Ford later said the lake would remain Lake Ontario now and forever and rejected Trump's move. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also rejected the renaming, pointing to the Indigenous Wendat origin of the name Ontario, which means beautiful lake or big lake". Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario then, now and always, Carney said on social media. The dispute comes amid broader economic and political tensions between the United States and Canada. The Trump administration had imposed 50 per cent tariffs on about USD 20 billion worth of Canadian goods, prompting Canada to announce retaliatory tariffs on US exports. Following the breakdown of trade talks, Trump cited trade frustrations in connection with the name change. (ANI)
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