The likelihood of Ukraine obtaining candidate status to the European Union in the near future is low.

This was stated by the Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte in the Parliament on Monday.

Rutte said that too many EU countries do not like this idea. He said it would also be unfair to the countries of the Western Balkans, which have waited much longer for candidate status.

One option, Rutte said, is for Ukraine to become a potential candidate for accession and be told how many steps it still has to take to gain full status.

"That's already been the case with Bosnia. This would also help ensure that the Ukrainian government is not demotivated," Rutte said.

Several parties in the lower house of the Dutch parliament have called for Ukraine to become a candidate for admission as soon as possible. They include D66, PvdA and GroenLinks, a coalition party and two opposition parties with which the government often tries to cooperate in votes.

The VVD party, led by Rutte, still does not want to grant this status to Ukraine.

Earlier, Rutte welcomed the EU's intention to provide aid for Ukraine's reconstruction, but said he wanted to tie it to reforms.