In April, the French government began the transition of 2.5 million civil servants from Microsoft Windows to homegrown and open-source European alternatives such as Linux by 2027. This initiative is part of a larger trend in Europe, where countries like Germany, Denmark, Italy, Austria, and Spain have also taken similar steps by gradually adopting open-source alternatives to assert their digital sovereignty and technological independence while addressing concerns regarding data surveillance, privacy law and rising licensing costs.

This is not just a remote continental experiment, as the initiative is rooted in the notion that technological dependence on big corporations can have strategic consequences. Digital sovereignty has become a critical issue as the world enters a new era of revolutionary advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) amid escalating multipolar competition.

Meanwhile, the Indo-Pacific, a major arena of this competition, remains in a vulnerable position due to its reliance on American and Chinese technology.

Why Europe is Replacing Foreign Tech

Europe’s push for digital sovereignty began with the 2018 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which implemented strict privacy and security measures to protect the data of its citizens. This effort was further reinforced by the U.S CLOUD Act, which gave U.S. authorities the power to compel American technology companies to disclose data stored anywhere in the world, including Europe.

Yet, the European Commission’s recent proposal for a digital “sovereignty package” to boost homegrown technologies in order to strengthen Europe's digital autonomy and resilience, stemmed from the Trump administration’s sanction against Beti Hohler and ten others for their work at the International Criminal Court. As a result, they lost access to use their credit cards and their accounts with US companies.    

Moreover, the unconventional methods utilized by the Trump administration have made European policy-makers aware that running government systems on foreign proprietary code leaves them exposed to ‘kill switches’ or sudden loss of access if diplomatic misalignment occurs. These concerns have led several European countries, including France, whose parliamentary inquiries scrutinized their dependence on foreign tools for state services and initiated a law to replace Microsoft’s Windows Operating System with Linux.  

Strategic Vulnerabilities in the Indo-Pacific

These concerns are equally relevant in the Indo-Pacific. As a primary theatre of multipolar competition, its dependence on foreign proprietary code for running critical systems makes the region susceptible to the whims of the major powers. An assertive U.S. foreign policy enabled by the CLOUD Act, along with the looming threat of ‘kill switches’ driven by diplomatic shifts, as well as parallel data-access ambitions of other major powers, puts the region in a vulnerable position.  

Therefore, dependence is not a viable choice anymore as sudden loss of access, compelled disclosure, supply-chain pressure, or quiet influence over updates can erode sovereignty faster than any kinetic confrontation.

Economic Hurdles and AI Disparities

BIMSTEC has deliberated on building Digital Public Infrastructure during the Digital Conclave 2025. Yet economic constraints stand as the main hindrance to any Indo-Pacific state emulating France. The region’s post-pandemic fiscal constraints make any large-scale technology initiative difficult to realize.

In spite of these hurdles, Thailand’s ThaiLLM and related projects are commendable initiatives in this regard. India is also investing in AI, but its investment remains very limited compared to their U.S. competitors, who are expected to invest $650 billion combined largely into AI this year.

Investing in Open-Source and Regional Infrastructure

Indo-Pacific countries should act fast by learning from Europe’s approach instead of dismissing it as a European eccentricity. Governments should start allocating funds, however modestly, to dedicated research and development, cultivating institutional knowledge, and local talent in the field, as delaying will only increase dependence and raise the eventual cost of exit. Besides, transitioning to open-source alternatives can also make financial sense, as seen in the case of France. The transition of French police forces to a customized version of Ubuntu Linux will save them $2 million annually.

A common BIMSTEC policy statement on digital sovereignty would give the region a clearer collective voice and a stronger negotiating footing with foreign companies. Additionally, BIMSTEC can be used to initiate a shift from U.S. cloud storage companies to regional alternatives such as TATA Communications (India) and NIPA Cloud (Thailand).

Furthermore, these platforms need to be paired with coordinated regional investments in native chip architectures and open hardware standards to prevent simply transferring dependency down the supply chain.

Collective Voice through Regional Platforms

In addition, the BIMSTEC framework can also provide a platform for structured industry-academia partnerships, joint research and development, and capacity-building assistance, helping to build a regional ecosystem that benefits all member states. These efforts can also build upon ASEAN’s evolving digital architecture as its Digital Masterplan 2025 established the foundation for a secure and transformative digital community.

More significantly, the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), scheduled for formal signing in November 2026, can provide a comprehensive framework template for the BIMSTEC as it will be the world’s first comprehensive region-wide digital agreement encompassing issues regarding data governance, digital trade, payments, cybersecurity, and trusted data flow.

Similarly, the European Union’s digital sovereignty agenda offers practical models that BIMSTEC can adapt. The EU’s 2026 Tech Sovereignty package, its Open Source Strategy, the Cloud and AI Development Act, and initiatives such as Gaia-X can provide tested frameworks for the BIMSTEC in terms of assessing cloud sovereignty, scaling open-source alternatives in public administrations, and reducing structural reliance on non-regional providers.

Adopting European instruments such as certification criteria, data-localization options and transitioning to open-source alternatives through the BIMSTEC can help the Bay of Bengal countries to craft regionally appropriate policies and collaborative mechanisms that strengthen their collective digital autonomy and gain stronger negotiating power.

Europe’s broader transition away from non-European proprietary software is neither an isolated incident nor a matter of mere European eccentricity. It is a message and a lesson for all: technological dependence and political autonomy risk becoming incompatible in the long run, and states must act promptly before a crisis emerges. If initial steps are not taken now, Indo-Pacific states risk discovering, under less favorable geopolitical weather, that their most sensitive systems answer first to foreign statutes and corporate priorities. The time to build alternatives and diversify is when choices still exist.

(The author is a postgraduate student in International Relations at Jahangirnagar University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The views expressed are personal. He can be reached at 20212053725nur@juniv.edu/ LinkedIn )