The international cloud services industry represents an arena of global economic competition and has the potential to become a field for political rivalry among various actors. States remain the primary actors in this competitive landscape, with the U.S. and China actively enhancing their positions through various regulatory measures. The article examines government regulation strategies, categorising them into ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ as well as ‘defensive’ and ‘offensive’, with examples provided for each. A thorough analysis of national strategies from official U.S. and Chinese documents reveals their conceptual approaches to cloud services regulation. The documents of international intergovernmental organisations and global governance institutions through which countries implement (both individually and in their collaborative participation) their strategies for regulating cloud services were examined in detail. Commonalities and differences in the regulatory policies of the U.S. and China are highlighted, both in their national strategies and in principles articulated at the international level. The study confirms the hypothesis that cloud services regulation serves as a tool for international political influence. Key factors in the evolution of the international regulatory system for cloud services are identified, including their further technological development and shifts in the global order. The primary scenario axis is identified as the U.S.–China competition for dominance in the Global South. Based on these findings, the author presents a scenario forecast for the future of international cloud services regulation. Two potential outcomes are considered: the confrontational one leading to increased political competition, bearing risks of Internet fragmentation, divergence in technical standards, and a higher likelihood of destructive actions, including military use of cloud services; and the consensual one, resulting in international convergence on all aspects of cloud services regulation, including technical standardisation, legal norms, economic rules, fundamental principles of personal data protection and respect for national interests of all states.
