Google Cloud and Thales Launch Sovereign Cloud Service in Germany
May 25, 2026
Google Cloud and Thales Launch Sovereign Cloud Service in Germany
Google Cloud has entered a strategic partnership with Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies for defense, aerospace, and cybersecurity, to launch a sovereign cloud service in Germany. The initiative is designed to keep sensitive data beyond the reach of foreign jurisdictions, responding to growing demand from governments and regulated industries for locally controlled cloud infrastructure.
The service will be operated through a newly established Germany-based entity that operates independently from Google Cloud. According to a joint press release, Thales will create this independent company, which will comply with strict local standards including the C5 certification and the emerging C3A framework. The structural setup is intended to prevent access to customer data by non-European third parties or under foreign legal jurisdictions.
This move expands on the model developed by S3NS, Thales’ French cloud subsidiary, which already operates a sovereign cloud region in France. Google Cloud described the partnership as part of a broader trend in Europe, where organizations increasingly seek to combine hyperscale cloud infrastructure with local operational control and regulatory safeguards.
Marianne Janik, Vice President for EMEA North at Google Cloud, stated that the partnership represents a significant milestone in the company’s commitment to digital sovereignty in Germany and Europe. She emphasized that by combining Google Cloud’s scale and power with Thales’ deep cybersecurity expertise and local control, German organizations in even the most sensitive sectors can innovate with confidence while meeting specific legal and operational requirements.
Christoph Ruffner, CEO and Country Director of Thales in Germany, noted that Germany is a critical market for sovereign technologies. He said the partnership is a direct response to both private and public sector organizations in Germany that want access to Google Cloud’s technology under full German control. Hélène Bringer, President of S3NS and Vice President for Critical Information Systems at Thales, welcomed the new partnership, calling it a European first. She explained that by aiming for both SecNumCloud qualification and the C5-C3A framework across both the French and German regions, the sovereign cloud model simultaneously targets different local certifications, simplifying compliance for multinational customers.
The new service is intended for public sector organizations and industries with strict regulatory requirements, where concerns over foreign access to cloud-hosted data have become increasingly important. The service is expected to become generally available by the fourth quarter of 2026.
Source: w.media
