An employee walks past a gas installation during a training exercise for handling emergencies at a gas-pumping station on the gas pipeline in the small town Boyarka on April 22, 2015 in the Kiev region. (Xinhua/AFP)

BAKU, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Azerbaijan has a strategic importance to Ukraine in terms of a replacement of Russian oil with that from Azerbaijan, Ukrainian ambassador to Azerbaijan Aleksandr Mishchenko told local TREND news agency here on Monday.

The diplomat said that in the future Ukraine may also opt for Azerbaijani gas, adding that Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR has been successfully operating in Ukraine.

"Diversification of energy resources and a chance to avoid dependence on Russia is a matter of national security for Ukraine," the diplomat explained.

According to Mishchenko, Azerbaijan-Ukraine joint working group on energy cooperation will hold a meeting in this month. The ambassador said the Ukrainian side has already submitted proposals to Azerbaijani side.

He said both countries are mulling over the huge projects related to the resumption of Azerbaijani oil supplies to Ukraine and possible involvement of Azerbaijan in modernization of the Ukrainian infrastructure.

Azerbaijani oil supplies will greatly reduce Ukraine's dependence of oil refining complex on Russian oil. Ukrtransnafta OJSC and Ukrtatnafta PJSC signed a protocol of intent on the supply of Azerbaijani oil to the Kremenchug refinery in Ukraine last year.