US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing federal agencies to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America”, in a symbolic move that comes amid escalating trade tensions between Washington and Ottawa.
The order, signed on Thursday, instructs US federal agencies to use the new name on government maps, official documents and databases.
However, Trump’s directive does not give the United States authority to rename Canada’s portion of the lake or force Canada, international organisations, mapmakers or other countries to recognise the new name.
Speaking after signing the latest order, Trump joked that the United States now had a gulf and a lake named after America and suggested that an ocean could be next.
“We have a Gulf and we have a Lake – now all we need is an ocean,” he told reporters from the Oval Office.
A large map of the Great Lakes region displayed behind Trump showed “Lake America” printed above Lake Ontario.
The name change comes as relations between the US and Canada deteriorate over trade.
Trade negotiations between Washington and Ottawa reportedly collapsed over the weekend, after which Trump imposed a 50 per cent tariff on several Canadian imports.
Trump has also threatened additional 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian steel, trucks, cars and auto parts from next year, prompting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government to retaliate with tariffs ranging from 25 to 50 per cent on hundreds of US products.
Trump again criticised Canada, repeating his long-standing argument that the country should not receive treatment similar to a US state.
“They want to be treated like a state, but they’re not a state,” Trump said, referring to his previous calls for Canada to become the 51st US state.
The US president also accused Canada of exploiting the United States through trade and complained about what he described as a $60 billion US trade deficit with the country.
Economists, however, have noted that much of the deficit is driven by US imports of Canadian oil, and that excluding oil, the US runs a significant trade surplus with Canada.
Trump also claimed American farmers face tariffs of up to 400 per cent in Canada.
However, about 97 per cent of US agricultural exports to Canada enter duty-free under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, while tariffs on some over-quota dairy, eggs and milk products can reach 300 per cent.
Trump further criticised the cost of US defence commitments to Canada, arguing that Washington receives little in return for protecting its northern neighbour.
The two countries are both members of NATO and have mutual defence obligations under the North Atlantic Treaty and other bilateral agreements.
Trump said the Lake America name change had been under consideration for some time and would take effect immediately.
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