Sailboats are seen in the distance on Lake Ontario, from Toronto, Ontario, on August 27, 2026. [AFP]
US President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered Lake Ontario to be renamed "Lake America" as he escalated his trade war with Canada, sparking immediate pushback from Ottawa.
Trump stepped up his trolling of Canada by signing an executive order changing the name of the body of water on the border between the North American neighbors.
But Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney swiftly rejected Trump's move, saying it would be called Lake Ontario "then, now and always."
The volatile US leader's move comes after US-Canada trade talks collapsed at the last minute last week, prompting the two longtime allies to slap tit-for-tat tariffs on each other.
"We're going to be changing the name of Lake Ontario effective immediately to Lake America," the 80-year-old Republican told journalists as he signed the order at the White House.
Asked by an AFP reporter why he was targeting an ally for punishment instead of America's adversaries, Trump replied: "The Canadian officials have treated us very badly. They're nasty people."
Behind Trump's desk in the Oval Office were two maps -- one with the words "Lake America" in red over the lake, and the other with the header, "Making the Great Lakes Even Greater."