GCloud rsync removes files it shouldn't

Hello,

Yes, As you have pointed it out correctly it is not recommended to use gsutil for Cloud Storage as mentioned in the public document. Since you are facing issues with gcloud tags, I suggest you use gsutil as a workaround only.

You may also refer to this StackOverflow for comparison b/w gcloud and gsutil. Since gcloud is the recommended command, And as it is not working as intended I suggest once again to raise a public issue tracker.