Well, not relying on US cloud would already be a giant step in the right direction, by making it significantly harder to snoop on the data.

I don't believe that's the case because the intelligence pooling is meant to remove cross-border friction. A general breakdown of western alliances would probably be required (and maybe that's where we're headed.)

Not just headed, it is already in the process.

> A general breakdown of western alliances would probably be required

Hearing a distant shout of "hold my beer" from the White House...

I suspect the other 4 eyes are somewhat less willing to do the US regime's bidding these days

On what basis?

Might have Something to do with the current US administration tweeting pictures of confidential material in the past, exposing their capabilities to the world. Intelligence community members tend to hold their cards close to their chests.

I mean, do you see any actual moves they’ve made to move away from the US? I don’t. They always make a lot of noise about how this time they’re not going to take the depredations of the US before doing just that.

I'm flattered that you think that the intelligence agencies of the four other "eyes", Australia, Canada, New Zealand; would tell me their moves, or that I'd hear about it, but honestly, I'm not that important.

Seriously though, what are you expecting to hear? For the CSIS to post to Twitter what they're hiding from the CIA, as if the CIA hasn't heard of Twitter or something? Or for the GCSB to broadcast which billionaires are making bunkers in Hammer Springs to /r/secretbillionairebunkers like someone is wrong on WarThunder?

What I'm saying is the spooks of their respective countries are just gonna keep a bit more to themselves and not tell the US because the think someone in the current US administration is going to leak it, putting their assets at risk. The respective secret agencies haven't put out coordinated press releases saying they're doing this or gone on the talk show tour to talk about it, so I have no proof, but it seems quite possible to me that they are.

With UK out there's no Five Eyes members in EU.

"Plus" is key - Five Eyes Plus includes EU members France and Germany, at minimum. It's a comfortable informal relationship between Five Eyes and highly trusted nations that have almost joined Five Eyes in the past. France was closest to becoming the official sixth eye under Obama. Japan is another of these nations.