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The AWS initiative is backed by a €7.8 billion ($9.04 billion) investment, expected to contribute €17.2 billion to the European economy by 2040
In sum – what to know:
Fully independent EU cloud – AWS’s sovereign cloud is physically, legally, and operationally separate, with all infrastructure and control located entirely within the European Union.
Strong data and governance controls – Customer data, metadata, IAM, and billing remain in the EU, with technical barriers preventing access from outside the region.
Broad services and long-term investment – The platform launches with core AWS and AI services and is supported by a €7.8 billion investment in European infrastructure and jobs.
AWS has officially launched the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, making the new platform generally available to customers across Europe. First announced in 2023, the cloud is designed to meet the most demanding sovereignty, data residency, and governance requirements, particularly for public sector bodies and highly regulated industries.
The company noted that the AWS European Sovereign Cloud operates as a fully independent cloud environment, both physically and logically separated from other AWS regions. All infrastructure, operations, and data processing are located entirely within the European Union. The first region is live in Brandenburg, Germany, featuring multiple availability zones with redundant power and networking to ensure continuous operation even during external connectivity disruptions, said AWS.
“The AWS European Sovereign Cloud and its Local Zones provide enhanced sovereign controls through its unique operational model. The AWS European Sovereign Cloud will be operated exclusively by EU residents located in the EU. This covers activities such as day-to-day operations, technical support, and customer service,” the firm said in a blog post.
“We’re gradually transitioning the AWS European Sovereign Cloud to be operated exclusively by EU citizens located in the EU. During this transition period, we will continue to work with a blended team of EU residents and EU citizens located in the EU,” the company added.
The sovereign cloud maintains AWS’s core security capabilities, including encryption, key management, and hardware-level isolation using the AWS Nitro System. It also meets major compliance standards such as ISO 27001, SOC 1/2/3, and BSI C5.
With the new cloud region already operational, customers have access to a broad range of services, including compute, storage, databases, containers, and AI tools such as Amazon SageMaker and Amazon Bedrock. AWS plans to expand the footprint with sovereign Local Zones in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Portugal.
The initiative is backed by a €7.8 billion ($9.04 billion) investment, expected to contribute €17.2 billion to the European economy by 2040 and support around 2,800 jobs annually, AWS added.
Last year, AWS had announced plans to launch a new AWS Region in Chile by the end of 2026. In a blog post, the company had stated that the AWS South America (Chile) Region will consist of three Availability Zones at launch.
This new Region joins the AWS South America (São Paulo) and AWS Mexico (Central) Regions as the company’s third AWS Region in Latin America. AWS spans 123 Availability Zones within 39 Geographic Regions, with announced plans for 7 more Availability Zones and 2 more AWS Regions.
