For quite some time, the EU itself manifesting “strategic ambiguity” (Džihić and Rauch, 2026, p. 6) regarding EU enlargement to the region, traded democracy for stability. If the EU enlargement policy is characterized by contradictions and inconsistencies then the divide between the citizens and the ruling elites will increase. From fatigue to fragile momentum: EU enlargement in the Western Balkans under geopolitical pressure. EU rule of law conditionality: Democracy or ‘stabilocracy’ promotion in the Western Balkans? EU enlargement and state capture in the Western Balkans.