By Olusegun Samuel Precious
U.S. President Donald Trump has escalated diplomatic tensions with Canada by signing an Executive Order to officially rename Lake Ontario to “Lake America”.
Trump signed the decree at the White House following the breakdown of bilateral trade talks. Addressing reporters in the Oval Office, the U.S. President announced that the name change takes immediate effect for U.S. federal purposes.
Under the provisions of the executive order, the U.S. Department of the Interior has been granted up to 30 days to formally update federal records with the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
Carney Dismisses Redesignation
Reacting to the development, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney dismissed the U.S. move, pointing to the centuries-old history behind the body of water.
“Things must be called by their name and this is Lake Ontario — today and forever,” Carney stated, adding that the designation traces back over 400 years.
The diplomatic feud marks the second major geographical renaming undertaken by the Trump administration. In 2025, Trump issued a similar executive order changing the official U.S. designation of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America”.
