The sovereignty paradox

The year since the 2025 Computers, Privacy, and Data Protection has made Europe more distinct as an entity. Two years ago, we were being chastised for paying insufficient attention to structural corporate power. At this conference last year, we were warned about “simplification”, since published as the Digital Omnibus that threatens to undo some aspects of data protection and other privacy rights. This year, we heard a lot about “European values”. Invoked as a metric: does “simplification” measure up or is it a sign of weakening? Invoked as a frame to guide developing the digital euro. Invoked as a reason why digital sovereignty is increasingly essential. In November 2025, 23 European countries signed a declaration embracing the latter as a policy. And yet, although Plixavra Vogiatzoglou introduced a panel discussion by calling digital sovereignty “urgent because of Trump’s trade wars”, she then said it was unrealistic. There’s a lot to like in the 2025 declaration, which lists as…