This study examines the international effects on democratization through a cross-regional comparison between Taiwan and Hungary. The findings firstly show that Both transitions were initiated by the unfavorable geopolitical climate (erosion of U.S. diplomatic support) or the lifting of outside pressure (the Gorbachev factor). In the consolidation period, while Hungarian democracy still relied on a stable near-abroad order and adaptation to the conditionality set by the EU and NATO, Taiwans political development and future were heavily determined by the US security support and the...