In Nomine, in cooperation with Finnish communications agency OSG Viestintä, announces that Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced the general availability of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and plans to expand the service across Europe. As part of this expansion, new AWS Local Zones will be established in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Portugal. In addition, Amazon plans to invest more than €7.8 billion in the AWS European Sovereign Cloud in Germany and to support an average of 2,800 full-time jobs annually.
Potsdam, January 15, 2026 – Amazon Web Services (AWS) today announced the launch of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud. This is a new, independent cloud service located entirely within the European Union and physically and logically isolated from other AWS Regions. The service is designed specifically for European governments and organizations that process sensitive data and require strong sovereignty, security, and legal assurances.
AWS also announced its intention to expand the European Sovereign Cloud beyond Germany across the European Union to meet stringent requirements for data residency, isolation, and low latency. The expansion will begin in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Portugal.
Since the beginning of AWS operations, the company’s global cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure has provided customers with full control over the location and movement of their data. This is supported by technical and operational controls as well as a global infrastructure that ensures high reliability, security, and availability.
The expansion of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and AWS Local Zones into three additional countries gives organizations more options to use cloud services at the highest level of independence while retaining access to the broad portfolio of AWS services. AWS Local Zones enable customers to keep data in a specific geographic location to meet data residency requirements. For more stringent needs, customers can also use AWS Dedicated Local Zones, AWS AI Factories, or AWS Outposts at their own locations, including on-premises data centers.
“Europe needs access to the most reliable cloud and artificial intelligence technology,” said Stéphane Israël, Chief Executive Officer of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud. “The expansion of AWS innovation across Europe will help accelerate customers’ growth and artificial intelligence ambitions. Customers want the best of both worlds: the capabilities of AWS cloud and AI services, combined with the assurance that their sovereignty requirements are met. A cloud built for Europe gives organizations the confidence to innovate and full control over their digital assets.”
Key Capabilities
Autonomy
The AWS European Sovereign Cloud is fully isolated from other AWS Regions and operated exclusively by residents of the European Union. The service does not rely significantly on infrastructure outside the EU and can continue to operate even if connectivity with the rest of the world is disrupted. In extreme circumstances, authorized AWS employees who are EU residents have access to a copy of the source code required to maintain the cloud.
Data Residency
Customers have full control over where their data is stored. All service-related metadata—including identity and access management (IAM), billing, and usage data—remains within the European Union.
Technical and Compliance Controls
Security is the foundation of digital sovereignty. The AWS European Sovereign Cloud uses the AWS Nitro System, which establishes a strong security boundary and prevents access to customer data, including by AWS employees. In addition, AWS provides advanced encryption and key management services as well as hardware security modules. The service complies with the independently validated AWS European Sovereign Cloud: Sovereignty Reference Framework (ESC-SRF), whose audit reports can be used by customers to demonstrate compliance.
Amazon Web Services
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is driven by customer obsession, a fast pace of innovation, a commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Nearly two decades of democratizing technology and making cloud computing and generative artificial intelligence accessible to organizations of all sizes and across all industries have made AWS one of the fastest-growing enterprise technology companies in history. Millions of customers trust AWS to accelerate innovation, transform their businesses, and shape the future. With the broadest artificial intelligence capabilities and a global infrastructure, AWS enables developers to turn big ideas into reality.
Photo: Matt Garman, CEO of AWS.
