European experts and a Taiwanese think tank agreed at the Budapest Forum that security in the Taiwan Strait directly affects European interests — a positive signal for Taiwan.

• Lai I-chung, president of the Prospect Foundation, noted that Taiwan Strait security is not only an Asian issue but also bears on Europe's security, democracy and geopolitical interests.
• The European experts on the panel were almost unanimous in saying that "if something happens to Taiwan, something happens to us too," no longer treating the Taiwan Strait as a distant concern.
• Lessons from the Russia-Ukraine war were drawn on: strengthening deterrence, deepening regional cooperation, and developing cheap defence systems that can be mass-produced.
• China's influence operations against Taiwan have shifted from economic inducements framed as "development opportunities" to disinformation and AI-driven narrative manipulation that erodes public trust in democracy.
• Hungary's new government takes a different diplomatic approach from the Orbán era, showing greater willingness to engage with Taiwan, and its dealings with the Trump administration in the United States may also change.

Outlook: Europe and Taiwan are expected to expand cooperation on information security and democratic resilience, with the new Hungarian government's stance toward Taiwan the key near-term thing to watch.