ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the impact of democratic backsliding within the European Union (EU) on the credibility of its enlargement policy, with particular reference to the Western Balkans. Drawing on the literature on EU normative power and the rule of law, it argues that internal challenges to liberal democracy among EU Member States undermine the Union's ability to act as a consistent and authoritative promoter of democratic standards abroad. The chapter situates democratic backsliding in Hungary and Poland within the broader debate on norm contestation, showing how illiberal practices within the Union weaken conditionality, reduce the legitimacy of external scrutiny, and embolden political elites in candidate countries to resist reforms. It further explores the limits of EU sanctioning instruments, including Article 7 Treaty on European Union (TEU) and conditionality mechanisms, highlighting their constrained effectiveness. The analysis suggests that the credibility gap has significant consequences for enlargement dynamics: while the EU remains the only viable framework for long-term transformation in the Western Balkans, its diminished normative authority risks slowing convergence and encouraging local practices of selective compliance. The chapter thus contributes to understanding how the EU's internal rule of law crisis reverberates externally, complicating its dual role as a community of values and a geopolitical actor.
