THE EVOLUTION OF DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY IN PUBLIC GOVERNANCE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CLOUD STRATEGIES

Superekin Igor Yuryevich, Osorkina Margarita Aleksandrovna

The article examines the evolution and diversification of governmental cloud strategies through the lens of digital sovereignty as a key priority of contemporary public policy. Using the examples of the United States of America, Italy, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates, the study identifies a shift from the early “Cloud First” paradigm toward more mature hybrid, multi-cloud, and sovereign architectures. The analysis demonstrates that digital sovereignty possesses a multidimensional nature—legal, institutional, technological, and human. A comparative assessment of the four cases reveals that federal states tend to adopt decentralized, multi-cloud models that enhance flexibility and risk diversification, whereas unitary systems favor the development of centralized sovereign platforms. The findings indicate that there is no universal model of digital sovereignty; its configuration depends on the form of government, the level of institutional digital maturity, and priorities of security and cost optimization. As a persistent trend, the paper highlights the “Cloud Smart + Cloud Native” nexus, which ensures data portability across cloud environments, enables managed security, and reduces dependence on a single provider. The research contributes to understanding how national governments approach cloud transformation amid increasing geopolitical and digital fragmentation.

Keywords:digital sovereignty; governmental cloud strategies; sovereign cloud; digital transformation; public sector governance