Just days after Ukraine’s President Zelensky declared his intention to start EU membership negotiations by the end of this year, the bloc’s former president Jean-Claude Juncker has poured cold water on the idea, branding it a country ‘corrupt at all levels of society’.

In an interview with the South German regional Augsburger Allgemeine paper, Juncker accused current EU officials of making ‘false promises’ to Ukraine and ‘telling Ukrainians that they can become members immediately’.

The Ukrainian government admitted that only two of the seven EU membership conditions had been met

‘Despite its efforts, it is not eligible to join and needs massive internal reform,’ he said. ‘We have had bad experiences with some so-called new members, for example when it comes to the rule of law. This cannot be repeated again.’

Juncker’s comments come in a week when the bloc’s foreign ministers have descended on Kyiv to discuss ‘long-term support’ for Ukraine. Meeting outside the EU’s borders for the first time ever, the location is designed to send a message to Moscow that the bloc’s support for Ukraine has not, in the words of the Kremlin, become ‘fatigued’.

Speaking on Monday after the meeting, Zelensky said, ‘Our key integration goal is to come up with a solution this year to begin membership negotiations, and today I heard once again that this is absolutely possible.’

Ukrainian officials insist they are making substantial progress on meeting the seven requirements set out by the EU for joining, including tackling corruption, judicial reform and dismantling the country’s oligarchy. In August, however, the Ukrainian government admitted that only two of the seven conditions had been met. Nevertheless, according to EU sources an agreement to start accession negotiations could be reached as early as December.

EU Membership has long been coveted by Ukraine and feared by Moscow. Joining the bloc is hugely popular with Ukrainians, particularly in light of the war with Russia. It was Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich’s decision to drop discussions with the bloc in favour of closer ties with Russia in 2013 which triggered the Maidan revolution, which in turn led to Putin’s annexation of Crimea the following year. Should Zelensky see the country through the EU accession process successfully, this will be a major coup for his administration.

Tomorrow, on the second day of the European Political Community summit in Granada, Spain, the EU heads of state will meet to discuss enlargement. European Council president Charles Michel will expand on his pitch for expansion, suggesting the EU can’t put it off ‘any longer’.

Ukraine’s passage into the EU is unlikely to be smooth – despite the exuberant displays of support from the bloc. Its admission is likely to be met with resistance from several states, notably Hungary, which has opposed the move and which, under its prime minister Victor Orban, has displayed some pro-Kremlin tendencies. The EU is said to be weighing up whether to unfreeze €13 billion (£11.2 billion) in funding to Hungary, held over the country’s non-compliance with rules protecting human rights and the rule of law, as a sweetener to secure its support for Ukraine.

According to modelling done in Brussels, should Ukraine accede to the EU, it would be entitled to as much as €186 billion (£160 billion) over seven years from the bloc’s budget. However, this would require large-scale reform within the EU, to prevent other members such as Estonia and Lithuania turning from ‘net receivers’ of funds from the bloc into ‘net givers’.

Despite the positive noises coming from the EU, there are still many hurdles to Ukraine’s membership. Given the large scale of reform required to accommodate Kyiv within the bloc, even if negotiations do begin in December, full membership is still likely months, if not years, away.