Amazon Web Services has launched a new cloud service designed to keep customer data and operations entirely within the European Union, responding to concerns among governments and regulated industries about reliance on US-based technology providers and the reach of American law enforcement powers.
The service, branded the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, is built around data centres and supporting systems that Amazon says are physically and legally separated from its other cloud infrastructure. Amazon said the set-up is intended to allow the European sovereign cloud to continue operating even in scenarios such as a disruption of connectivity between the EU and the wider internet, or restrictions on exports of software from the United States.
The first data centre for the initiative is being built in Brandenburg, the German state that surrounds Berlin. Amazon said it plans additional sites in Germany and other European countries, supported by investments of more than €7.8 billion.
A key element of the design is governance. Amazon said the European sovereign cloud will be operated and overseen by a German company, with management and an advisory board made up of EU citizens, and with the intention that staff working on the service will, over time, hold EU citizenship.
The move comes as European policymakers and customers place greater emphasis on “data sovereignty”, a concept shaped by legal disputes over international data transfers, national security concerns, and the market dominance of large non-European cloud providers. A central issue is the US CLOUD Act, enacted in 2018, which allows US authorities to compel US-based service providers to produce data under their control, even when that data is stored outside the United States. European officials and corporate compliance teams have long examined how this interacts with EU privacy law and national rules covering official or sensitive information.
In parallel, the EU has sought to reduce legal uncertainty around transatlantic data flows. In July 2023, the European Commission adopted an adequacy decision for the EU–US Data Privacy Framework, creating a mechanism for personal data transfers to certified US organisations under specified safeguards. The framework has also faced legal and political scrutiny in Europe, reflecting the long-running tension between EU privacy standards and US surveillance and disclosure regimes.
Amazon’s European sovereign cloud is positioned as a product response to this environment. AWS has previously outlined plans for an EU-based region with infrastructure located wholly inside the Union and designed to avoid “critical dependencies” on systems outside EU borders, including elements such as dedicated network connectivity and security operations.
The Brandenburg build-out also sits within a broader investment pattern by hyperscale providers in Europe. Amazon has separately described multi-year commitments to expand German cloud infrastructure through 2040, alongside plans to support associated employment across the data centre supply chain.
Competition on “sovereign” offerings has intensified as public sector buyers, defence-related contractors, healthcare providers and financial institutions seek arrangements that limit exposure to foreign jurisdictional claims. Reuters reported that other major providers, including Microsoft and Google, have introduced or expanded Europe-based data storage and control options to meet similar requirements.
EU policy debates have also shaped vendor strategies. Work on an EU-wide cybersecurity certification label for cloud services, known as the European Cybersecurity Certification Scheme for Cloud Services (EUCS), has been politically sensitive. Draft versions have moved away from earlier proposals that would have required providers to be insulated from non-EU laws, focusing instead on technical and disclosure-based requirements—an evolution with implications for US firms seeking access to government cloud contracts.
Alongside regulation, European initiatives have tried to encourage a more autonomous data ecosystem. The Gaia-X project, launched in 2020 with support from European governments and industry, has promoted federated approaches to data infrastructure and interoperability, framed around the aim of strengthening European digital sovereignty.
For AWS, the European sovereign cloud offers a new route to customers whose procurement rules or risk assessments require segregation of infrastructure, operations and governance within the EU. Amazon has not disclosed specific customer targets for the service, but the scale of planned investment and the emphasis on EU-based control indicate a focus on public sector and heavily regulated markets where compliance requirements can determine supplier eligibility.
