According to two U.S. officials, President Donald Trump plans to announce next week during his trip to Saudi Arabia that the United States will now call the Persian Gulf the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia.

Arab countries want to change the name of the sea near southern Iran, but Iran prefers to keep its traditional name for the gulf.

Two officials from the U.S. spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday. They did not want their names used so they could talk about the topic openly. The White House and National Security Council did not reply right away when asked for their thoughts.

Since the 16th century, this area has usually been called the Persian Gulf. However, in many countries in the Middle East, people often use the names "Gulf of Arabia" or "Arabian Gulf." In 2012, the government of Iran, which was once called Persia, even said they would sue Google. This was because Google chose not to put any name on this body of water on their maps.

On Google Maps in the U.S., this sea is called the Persian Gulf (Arabian Gulf). But Apple Maps only calls it the Persian Gulf.

For many years, the U.S. military has called the Persian Gulf the Arabian Gulf in their official statements and pictures, without asking other countries first.

The name of this body of water is a sensitive topic for Iranians who are proud of their country's long history as the Persian Empire. An argument started in 2017 when President Trump called it the Arabian Gulf. Iran's president at that time, Hassan Rouhani, said Trump should "study geography."

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote online that people knew Trump would be friends with whoever paid him the most, and now they know he will also change his ideas about countries for money.

On Wednesday, Iran’s foreign minister also shared his view, stating that the names of Middle East waterways "do not mean one country owns them, but instead show a shared respect for our common history."

Abbas Araghchi wrote on social media that trying to change the name of the Persian Gulf for political reasons shows they are not friendly to Iran and its people, and this is strongly criticized.

Any quick decision on this issue will not be accepted legally or geographically; it will only make Iranians everywhere angry, no matter where they live or what they believe.

Trump has the power to change the official U.S. name, but he cannot force other countries to use that name.

The International Hydrographic Organization, which includes the United States, helps make sure all the world's seas, oceans, and rivers used by ships are mapped in the same way. It also gives names to some of these waters. Sometimes, different countries use different names for the same sea or important geographical place in their official papers.

As well as Saudi Arabia, Trump plans to visit Doha in Qatar, and Abu Dhabi, the main city of the UAE, which are also by the sea.

The U.S. president also has important financial connections to these countries through his personal businesses, which he still owns while he is president.

This happened several months after Trump said the U.S. would call the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

The Associated Press sued the Trump administration this year. The White House stopped their reporters from covering most events because the news group did not follow the president's order. The president wanted them to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America" in the United States.

A judge appointed by President Donald Trump decided last month that the First Amendment protects the Associated Press (AP) from the government punishing it for the words it uses. He also said that the AP should be allowed access again.