US president says he will announce decision on waterway during trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.United States President Donald Trump has said he will make a decision on how the US refers to the “Persian Gulf” during an upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said he expected his hosts to ask about the name the US uses for the waterway during his first trip to the Middle East since retaking the White House.
“I’ll have to make a decision,” Trump said in response to a question about whether he would make an announcement on the body of water’s name.
“I don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings. I don’t know if feelings are going to be hurt.”
“I’m going to be given a briefing on that and I’ll make a decision,” Trump added.
Trump’s comments came after US media reported that he plans to use the May 13-16 trip to announce that the US will begin referring to the body of water as the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia.
The name of the waterway has long been a source of tensions between Arab nations and Iran. Advertisement
Iran argues that the “Persi …
