AWS Launches European Sovereign Cloud, Plans EU Expansion

On Thursday 15 January 2026, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the general availability of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and plans to expand its footprint across Europe.

According to AWS, the European Sovereign Cloud is a new, independent cloud infrastructure for Europe, entirely located within the European Union (EU) and physically and logically separate from other AWS regions. AWS added that the cloud is designed as a fully featured, independently operated sovereign cloud, backed by technical controls and legal safeguards intended to meet the needs of European governments and enterprises handling sensitive data.

The AWS European Sovereign Cloud has launched its first AWS region in Brandenburg, Germany. AWS also announced plans to extend the cloud beyond Germany, starting with new sovereign AWS local zones in Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal. These local zones are designed to support in-country data residency and low latency requirements.

AWS explained that the European Sovereign Cloud is intended to give customers "additional choice to meet the EU's stringent sovereignty requirements". It described AWS local zones as a type of infrastructure that allow customers to store their data in a specific geographic location to meet data residency requirements or run latency sensitive applications.

"Europe needs access to the most robust cloud and AI technology. The expansion of AWS innovation across Europe will help supercharge customers' growth and AI ambitions," said Stéphane Israël, managing director of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and digital sovereignty.

As part of its long-term commitment, Amazon plans to invest more than €7.8 billion in the AWS European Sovereign Cloud in Germany and support an average of 2,800 full-time equivalent jobs annually. Further investments are planned in connection with the expansion to additional EU countries.

In addition, AWS announced the appointment of Stefan Hoechbauer, Vice President of AWS Global Sales Germany and Europe Central, as a managing director of the AWS European Sovereign Cloud. He will work closely with Stéphane Israël, who will lead the AWS European Sovereign Cloud and be responsible for management and operations. AWS also named new members of the advisory board: three Amazon employees - Stéphane Ducable, Vice President of EMEA Public Policy at AWS, Ian McGarry, Director of Amazon CloudWatch, and Barbara Scarafia, Vice President and associate general counsel Europe at Amazon - and two independent board members - General (Ret.) Philippe Lavigne, who most recently served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, and Sinéad McSweeney, who currently serves on various boards and was previously Vice President of Public Policy at Twitter.

AWS stated that the European Sovereign Cloud will initially offer more than 90 services across a range of categories, including AI, compute, containers, database, networking, security and storage. It said customers from the public sector and regulated industries across Europe have already begun using the cloud.

Commenting on the news, Luxembourg's Minister of the Economy, SMEs, Energy and Tourism, Lex Delles, stated: "We welcome Amazon's multi-billion euro commitment to the AWS European Sovereign Cloud. Luxembourg, as home to Amazon's European headquarters, plays a pivotal role in Europe's digital transformation and remains dedicated to fostering robust digital infrastructure that drives economic growth and reinforces Europe's leadership in advanced technology investments."