Quebec/Canada : The "Sovereign Cloud" wake-up call we can no longer ignore

By Paul Allard, Florian Strich and Claude Coulombe PhD.,

co-founders Persevere Consulting Inc.

February 3rd, 2026

While Canada debates tariffs and trade corridors, a quiet panic is gripping the Élysée Palace in Paris.

According to explosive reports this week from the French press (Enquête Souveraineté Numérique publié dans La Tribune), France is finally facing a terrifying reality: The United States could turn off the digital lights.

The report details a scenario that was once considered impossible—a "Huawei scenario" applied to US Cloud giants. It cites recent precedents where even international judges at The Hague found their personal Microsoft and Google accounts frozen by US sanctions.

The message from Europe is clear: Being an ally does not protect you from American extraterritoriality.

If France—a nuclear power, a G7 member, and a pillar of the EU—is frantically reassessing its dependence on AWS, Google, and Azure, why are Canada and Quebec still hitting the snooze button?

The "Huawei scenario": it can happen here

The French investigation highlights a critical vulnerability: 71% of the French cloud market is held by the US "Big Three." In Canada, that number is likely even higher. We operate under the naïve assumption that the US-Canada relationship is unbreakable. But as Mark Carney recently warned, the "rules-based order" is fading. We have entered an era of transactional power.

If a future US administration decides to leverage its technological dominance to force concessions on dairy, lumber, or Arctic sovereignty, they don't need to send an aircraft carrier. They just need to restrict access to the cloud infrastructure that runs our banks, our hospitals, and our government agencies.

As the French report notes: "The prospect of service interruption... is being considered seriously."

The "sovereignty-washing"1 trap: learning from the AWS gambit

The second major lesson from Europe concerns the illusion of safety.

To quell European fears, Amazon Web Services (AWS) just launched a "European Sovereign Cloud," headquartered in Germany, staffed by Europeans, and led by former Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël. It is a masterclass in optics.

But let’s be clear: This is a trap.

French experts warn that despite "operational autonomy," the ultimate ownership remains American. Therefore, the US CLOUD Act and FISA 702 still apply. Therefore, a US court order could compel the parent company to hand over data stored in Berlin—or Montreal.

Canada and Quebec must not fall for "Sovereignty-Washing."

Just because a hyperscaler opens a "Canada East" region, hires a former RIM executive, and puts a maple leaf on the dashboard does not mean your data is sovereign.

Physics beats Law. If their headquarters are in Seattle or Redmond, they own your data.

Quebec: the opportunity to be the "Hydro-Québec" of sovereign AI

This wake-up call is a massive opportunity for Quebec.

Quebec has always understood the value of sovereignty in energy and culture. We built Hydro-Québec to ensure we weren't dependent on foreign energy. We passed Law 25 to protect our citizens' privacy.

Yet, we are currently shipping our most valuable resource—data—south of the border to be processed by proprietary AI models.

We need a "Data-Québec" supporting sovereign AI.

The French report highlights local champions like OVHcloud and Scaleway as vital strategic assets. Quebec and Canada have the talent and the energy to build the same. We need to stop subsidizing foreign hyperscalers and start procuring from sovereign, open-source infrastructures located here, owned here, and subject only to Canadian and Quebec law.

The roadmap: from renters to owners

To avoid becoming a digital colony, Canadian and Quebec leaders must adopt a new doctrine for 2026:

1. Reject the "Trusted Cloud" narrative: Operational autonomy is insufficient without legal immunity. If the parent company is US-based, the risk remains.

2. Mandate open source for government AI: Public money should not purchase black-box software that feeds foreign IP. We must build on open-weight models (like Llama or Mistral derivatives) hosted on sovereign hardware.

3. Build domestic capacity: We cannot rely on the "goodwill" of a neighbor who, as recent politics have shown, can be unpredictable.

   
   

Conclusion

France has realized that its digital house is built on rented land, and the landlord is getting unpredictable. Canada and Quebec are living in the same house. The sign in the window says "Strategic Partner," but the reality is "Digital Dependent."

It is time to take the sign down. It is time to build our own fortress. Because when the digital borders close, the only cloud you can trust is the one you own.

Your insights and actions are crucial. Share your perspectives in the comments and join the discussion!

Source:

1. https://www.lecho.be/opinions/general/general/Expert-Sovereignty-washing-quand-le-cloud-se-pare-d-un-label-europeen-trompeur/10646005.html

2. https://www.latribune.fr/article/tech/informatique/1690718711784314/et-si-trump-rendait-malgre-lui-notre-cloud-plus-souverain

Disclaimer: AI contributed to the creation of this article, but it was guided, reviewed and fact-checked by Persevere Consulting’s human experts. Please note that the content and material provided in this article is for general information purposes only. It is not to be taken or relied upon as legal or management advice and should not be used for professional or commercial purposes. This article is intended to communicate general information about relevant  sustainable productivity, sustainable and sovereign AI, and data governance matters as of the indicated date. The content is subject to change based on a constantly evolving environment.