CISPE takes the cloud industry to task: "Sovereignty washing" dominates the market, while genuine European cloud sovereignty is being diluted by marketing campaigns.
Fake Sovereignty Exposed
CISPE identifies systematic "sovereignty washing" by US hyperscalers:
- EU data centers: Hardware in Europe, control in the USA
- Compliance theater: GDPR conformity without real sovereignty
- Local partnerships: European partners as a fig leaf
- Government cloud: "Sovereign" services with US backdoors
Real Sovereignty Requires More
CISPE defines real cloud sovereignty as:
- European control: Management and operations in EU hands
- Legal certainty: EU jurisdiction without CLOUD Act risks
- Technical independence: No dependency on US components
- Transparency: Disclosure of all dependencies
EU Politics Under Pressure
The criticism also targets EU politicians who are blinded by sovereignty washing. CISPE demands stricter criteria for "sovereign cloud" labels and genuine independence from US technology stacks.
Particularly problematic: Many EU governments purchase "sovereign" services that are factually under US control. This undermines both digital sovereignty and national security.
Source: The Register 18.03.2026