US tells diplomats to lobby against foreign data sovereignty laws
Source: TechCrunch
In Brief
Posted: 6:56 AM PST · February 25, 2026
Image Credits: Mandel Ngan / Getty Images
The Trump administration has ordered U.S. diplomats to lobby against countries’ attempts to regulate how American tech companies handle foreigners’ data, arguing that data sovereignty laws threaten the advancement of AI services and technology, Reuters reported, citing an internal diplomatic cable.
The cable, signed by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, says such laws would:
- “disrupt global data flows,
- increase costs and cybersecurity risks,
- limit AI and cloud services,
- expand government control in ways that can undermine civil liberties and enable censorship,”
according to the report.
The cable directs diplomats to:
- “counter unnecessarily burdensome regulations, such as data localization mandates.”
- Track proposals that would promote data sovereignty laws.
- Promote the Global Cross‑Border Privacy Rules Forum, an international group that claims to enable “trusted data flows globally through international data protection and privacy certifications.”
Context
The order comes as countries worldwide increase scrutiny of how Big Tech and AI firms use citizens’ data. The European Union has led the charge with laws like the GDPR, the Digital Services Act, and the AI Act, seeking to curb tech companies’ control and exploitation of user data and hold them accountable.
Historically, the Trump administration has opposed such regulatory approaches, and this order reinforces that position as the government seeks to boost U.S. AI companies.
The U.S. State Department did not immediately return a request for comment.