US President Donald Trump Suggests Renaming Strait of Hormuz to 'Trump Strait'

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested renaming the Strait of Hormuz to “Trump Strait,” claiming that the crucial waterway was now under US control. Mr Trump has previously ordered the US government to rename two international bodies of water, altering the official designations of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and Lake Ontario to Lake America.

“Now that we have it under USA control, should we change the name Hormuz Strait to Trump Strait?” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Like America itself, it would be ‘hotter’ than ever before.” While the US President only holds the authority to direct the federal government regarding place names, other nations are free to disregard these new nomenclatures, though tech giants Google and Apple quickly updated their maps for US users.

Earlier this week, Mr Trump claimed the US had taken control of the Strait of Hormuz. On Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the waterway could soon become “worthless” as Gulf states fast-track alternative routes for sending energy supplies to global markets. The Trump administration has continued to face difficulties in ending the war in Iran and fully reopening the strait, where shipping levels remain only a fraction of prewar norms.

The strait, through which one-fifth of the global petroleum liquids used to be shipped, has remained at the centre of the stand-off with Iran. This situation has driven energy prices higher and caused the US President's approval ratings to decline ahead of midterm elections in November, where control of Congress is at stake and American voters express growing concern over rising costs.

Mr Trump's fixation on changing geographical names has drawn online ridicule while igniting a broader debate over whether a US President should have the unilateral power to alter such designations. Although the Strait of Hormuz is not located near the US, a process exists by which the US Geological Survey could allow for a name change, primarily for federal agencies.

A domestic names committee within the USGS reviews submissions and votes on potential changes for locations inside the US, while the Foreign Names Committee of the US Board on Geographic Names could potentially weigh in on a hypothetical Strait of Hormuz name change. When the USGS responded to Mr Trump’s request to change Lake Ontario to Lake America last week, the President published an email from agency director Ned Mamula announcing the update.

“As of 4.30pm today, the US Geological Survey has officially designated the former Lake Ontario to be renamed as Lake America in all official USGS electronic documents … the change will begin occurring in printed documents over the next several days,” Mr Mamula wrote.