Microsoft steps up cloud protections for data-conscious EU
PARIS — American tech giant Microsoft said Monday it was offering new cloud-computing products for European governments and organisations keen to control their data and ensure compliance with strict EU rules.
Microsoft launched the offering in a statement strewn with the words 'sovereign' and 'sovereignty', reflecting anxiety among political and tech leaders outside the US about American dominance.
The biggest change Microsoft announced was that only staff based in the EU will be able to control remote access to cloud computing systems — rented remote hardware for storing and processing data — located in the bloc.
Its 'Sovereign Public Cloud' product 'ensures customer data stays in Europe, under European Law, with operations and access controlled by European personnel, and encryption is under full control of customers,' the company said.
'All remote access by Microsoft engineers to the systems that store and process your data in Europe is approved and monitored by European resident personnel in real-time and will be logged in a tamper-evident ledger,' it added.
Microsoft also said that clients would be able to operate local, walled-off versions of its office software like Exchange and Sharepoint in their own data centres, offering them 'full control on security, compliance, and governance'.
The option is 'designed for governments, critical industries, and regulated sectors that need to meet the highest standards of data residency, operational autonomy, and disconnected access,' Microsoft added.
The Redmond-based company said its new products would be available by the end of the year.
Microsoft's push to offer more 'sovereign' options follows up on an April promise to expand data centres in 16 European countries, contribute to building an artificial intelligence 'ecosystem' on the continent and work with the region's cloud operators.
American companies account for between 70 and 80 percent of the European cloud-computing market.
But France in particular has been pushing to build up European capabilities to keep data out of reach of the US government.
American law includes provisions under which Washington can compel private companies to grant access to data stored on their servers — even outside US territory.
Schleswig-Holstein, one of Germany's 16 states, said Thursday that it would eliminate Microsoft software from its systems starting from later this year. — AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Shanghai-Geneva direct flight takes off
GENEVA, June 16 (Xinhua) -- China Eastern Airlines' inaugural direct flight linking Shanghai, China, with Geneva, Switzerland, landed here early Monday morning. Flight MU217 departed from Shanghai Pudong International Airport carrying 243 passengers, achieving a seat occupancy rate of over 85 percent. The aircraft arrived in Geneva at 7:25 a.m. local time and was greeted with a ceremonial water cannon salute, a traditional tribute reserved for major occasions in civil aviation. Operated by China Eastern Airlines, the new service will run four times weekly - on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. "Shanghai is a key gateway to China, and this connection will boost high-value tourism, business travel, and cultural ties," said Adrien Genier, CEO of the Geneva Tourism & Conventions Foundation. The foundation also noted that China remains one of Geneva's most important and fastest-growing long-haul markets as of 2024. "It will make travel between the two countries much easier - not only for tourists, but for diplomats and business travelers, who are particularly important in Geneva," said Yves-Daniel Viredaz, Head of Business Development at Geneva Airport. Liu Haiping, General Manager of the Europe Marketing Center at China Eastern, highlighted the impact of China's current 30-day visa-free entry policy for Swiss and some other European nationals. "We've seen strong growth across our European routes thanks to the visa-free policy, with Shanghai serving as a key gateway for travelers heading to and from China," Liu said.
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
G7 unity tested as Trump calls Russia ouster a mistake
KANANASKIS, Alberta: Leaders from the Group of Seven nations began annual talks on Monday with wars escalating in Ukraine and the Middle East, as US President Donald Trump said removing Russia from the former Group of Eight was a mistake. The G7 leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US, along with the European Union, are convening in the resort area of Kananaskis in the Canadian Rockies until Tuesday. With an escalating Israel-Iran conflict, the summit in Canada is seen as a vital moment to try to restore a semblance of unity among democratic powerhouses. In an early sign that they may struggle to reach agreement on key issues, a US official said Trump would not sign a draft statement calling for de-escalation of the Israel-Iran conflict. Speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump said kicking Russia out of the former Group of Eight was a mistake. Members removed Russia in 2014 after it annexed Crimea. "This was a big mistake," Trump said. "You wouldn't have that war. You know you have your enemy at the table, I don't even consider, he wasn't really an enemy at that time." Canada has abandoned any effort to adopt a comprehensive communique to avert a repeat of the 2018 summit in Quebec, when Trump instructed the US delegation to withdraw its approval of the final communique after leaving. Leaders have prepared several other draft documents seen by Reuters, including on migration, artificial intelligence, and critical mineral supply chains. None of them have been approved by the United States, however, according to sources briefed on the documents. Europeans are on the same page on most issues, a European diplomat said. But without Trump, it is unclear if there will be any declarations, the diplomat said. The first five months of Trump's second term upended foreign policy on Ukraine, raised anxiety over his closer ties to Russia, and resulted in tariffs on US allies. Talks on Monday will centre around the economy, advancing trade deals, and China. Efforts to reach an agreement to lower the G7 price cap on Russian oil, even if Trump decided to opt out, were complicated by a temporary surge in oil prices since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 12, two diplomatic sources said. Oil prices fell on Monday on reports Iran was seeking a truce. The escalation between the two regional foes is high on the agenda, with diplomatic sources saying they hope to urge restraint and a return to diplomacy and would encourage Trump to sign a declaration. "I do think there's a consensus for de-escalation. Obviously, what we need to do today is to bring that together and to be clear about how it is to be brought about," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters. RUSSIAN ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM Further highlighting the unease among some of Washington's allies, Trump spoke on Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin and suggested the Russian leader could play a mediation role between Israel and Iran. French President Emmanuel Macron dismissed the idea, arguing that Moscow could not be a negotiator because it had started an illegal war against Ukraine. A European diplomat said Trump's suggestion showed that Russia was very much on US minds. "In the eyes of the US, there's no condemnation for Ukraine; no peace without Russia; and now even credit for its mediation role with Iran. For Europeans, this will be a really tough G7," the diplomat said. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte will attend the summit on Tuesday. European officials said they hoped to use the meeting and next week's Nato summit to convince Trump to toughen his stance on Putin. "The G7 should have the objective for us to converge again, for Ukraine to get a ceasefire to lead to a robust and lasting peace, and in my view it's a question of seeing whether President Trump is ready to put forward much tougher sanctions on Russia," Macron said.--REUTERS
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
France seals Israeli weapons booths at Paris Air Show over Gaza, Iran wars
LE BOURGET, France: Geopolitical tensions roiled the opening of the Paris Air Show on Monday as French authorities sealed off Israeli weapons industry booths amid the conflicts in Iran and Gaza, a move that Israel condemned as "outrageous." The decision added drama to the major aerospace industry event, which was already under the shadow of last week's deadly crash of Air India's Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Black walls were installed around the stands of five Israeli defence firms at the trade fair in Le Bourget, an airfield on the outskirts of Paris. The booths displayed "offensive weapons" that could be used in Gaza – in violation of agreements with Israeli authorities, a French government source told AFP. The companies – Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael, Uvision, Elbit and Aeronautics – make drones and guided bombs and missiles. An Israeli exhibitor wrote a message in yellow chalk on one of the walls, saying the hidden defence systems "are protecting the state of Israel these days. The French government, in the name of discrimination is trying to hide them from you!" French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou defended the decision during a Monday press conference at the air show. "The French government's position was very simple: no offensive weapons at the arms exposition," he said. "Defensive weapons were perfectly acceptable," he added. Bayrou cited the ongoing conflict in Gaza as the rationale behind the ban. "Given the situation in Gaza... which is extremely serious from a humanitarian and security point of view, France was keen to make it clear that offensive weapons should not be present at this exposition," Bayrou said. Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was shocked by the "outrageous" closure of the pavilions and said the situation should be "immediately corrected." "Israeli companies have signed contracts with the organisers... it's like creating an Israeli ghetto," he said on French television channel LCI. The Israeli defence ministry said in a statement that the "outrageous and unprecedented decision reeks of policy-driven and commercial considerations." "The French are hiding behind supposedly political considerations to exclude Israeli offensive weapons from an international exhibition – weapons that compete with French industries," it said. "This is particularly striking given Israeli technologies' impressive and precise performance in Iran." Israel launched surprise strikes on Iranian military and nuclear sites on Friday, killing top commanders and scientists, prompting Tehran to hit back with a barrage of missiles. The presence of Israeli firms at Le Bourget, though smaller than in the past, was already a source of tension before the start of the Paris Air Show, because of the conflict in Gaza. A French court last week rejected a bid by NGOs to ban Israeli companies from Le Bourget over concerns about "international crimes." Local lawmakers from the Seine-Saint-Denis department hosting the event were absent during Bayrou's visit to the opening of the air show in protest over the Israeli presence. "Never has the world been so disrupted and destabilised," Bayrou said earlier at a roundtable event, urging nations to tackle challenges "together, not against each other." The row over Israel cast a shadow over a trade fair that is usually dominated by displays of the aerospace industry's latest flying wonders, and big orders for plane makers Airbus and Boeing. Airbus announced an order of 30 single-aisle A320neo jets and 10 A350F freighters by Saudi aircraft leasing firm AviLease. The European manufacturer also said Riyadh Air was buying 25 long-range, wide-body A350-1000 jets. But Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg last week cancelled plans to attend the biennial event, to focus on the investigation of the Air India crash. "Our focus is on supporting our customers, rather than announcing orders at this air show," a Boeing spokeswoman told AFP on Monday. The London-bound Dreamliner crashed shortly after take-off in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, killing 241 passengers and crew and another 38 on the ground. One passenger survived.--AFP
