AWS launches new cloud service entirely located within the EU

Tanya Weaver Thu 15 Jan 2026

Collected at: https://eandt.theiet.org/2026/01/15/aws-launches-new-cloud-service-entirely-located-within-eu

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, an independently operated cloud infrastructure located entirely within the European Union.

The European Sovereign Cloud will be physically and logistically separate from other AWS regions, such as the US. This ensures that sensitive data and workloads utilising this service remain within the region.

European regulators and business leaders have previously criticised AWS and other US-based cloud providers for a lack of independent control, raising concerns that sensitive data stored in Europe could still fall under US legal jurisdiction.

Amazon says this new independently operated cloud will offer its European users sovereignty and operational independence to meet strict EU data rules, while still enabling access to the full breadth of AWS cloud and AI services.

The service has no critical dependencies on non-EU infrastructure and will be operated only by personnel who are EU residents located in the EU, subject to EU law.

AWS has established a separate European company structure for this new service, based in Germany, with a parent company and three subsidiaries. This initiative will be backed by a €7.8bn investment through 2040 and is expected to support an average of 2,800 full-time equivalent jobs annually.

Initially launched in Germany, the service will expand across Europe, beginning with ‘AWS local zones’ in Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal.

Users will be able to store data in a specific geographic location to meet in-country data residency requirements or run latency sensitive applications. Its unique design will enable it to continue operations indefinitely, even in the event of a communications disruption with the rest of the world.

Stéphane Israël, managing director of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and digital sovereignty, said: “Customers want the best of both worlds – they want to be able to use AWS’s full portfolio of cloud and AI services while ensuring they can meet their stringent sovereignty requirements. By building a cloud that is European in its infrastructure, operations and governance, we’re empowering organisations to innovate with confidence while maintaining complete control over their digital assets.”

The launch of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud has been broadly welcomed by customers, partners and policymakers within Europe.

Mauro Capo, digital sovereignty lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Accenture, said: “AWS European Sovereign Cloud offers organisations in regulated industries additional sovereignty controls coupled with a rich set of services to innovate responsibly. As a launch partner, we are committed to helping our European clients harness this capability to reinvent and unlock new growth opportunities for their organisations.”

Last year, MPs expressed concern that key parts of the UK’s digital infrastructure was hosted on servers abroad, following the widespread outage affecting AWS  that took various banking websites offline during October 2025. 

In December 2025, AWS and Google teamed up to launch a multicloud networking service  that makes it easier for different cloud platforms to connect securely and at high speed.