EU Draft Law Would Bar Non-European Firms from Defence and Healthcare Contracts

The European Commission introduced a tech sovereignty package earlier this month that includes four initiatives covering chips, infrastructure, software, cloud services and artificial intelligence. The highest tier of the draft law would bar non-European companies from winning public contracts in sectors such as defence and healthcare.

Last week the Trump administration cut off foreign access to Anthropic's most advanced AI models, including access by the company's own foreign employees.

Euronews reported that the decision confirmed Europe's concerns over potential foreign cutoffs and added momentum to the sovereignty agenda. Around 80 percent of Europe's digital infrastructure and technology comes from outside the EU, with the market dominated by U.S. companies Google, Microsoft and Apple and Chinese companies Alibaba and ByteDance.

Eurobarometer data showed that 94 percent of respondents in Sweden, 93 percent in Finland and 92 percent in Denmark believe the EU should prioritise European-controlled digital infrastructure investments. Support for reducing dependence on non-EU technologies reached 88 percent in Sweden and 87 percent in Germany, Denmark, Finland and Luxembourg.

Danish respondents recorded the highest willingness to switch to an EU-based provider even at higher cost, at 76 percent, followed by 73 percent in Sweden and Croatia.

The Danish government allocated approximately €6.96 million for the period 2026-2029 to reduce dependence on large technology companies. The public campaign Danmark Skifter ran in the first three months of 2026 and encouraged users to turn off screens at certain times or switch to alternative platforms.