KIEV, Aug. 30 – Ukraine plans to cut Russian natural gas imports by two thirds within the next five years, replacing it with domestically extracted resources, like coal, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said Tuesday.

The plans for major reduction in gas imports come as Moscow and Kiev have failed over the past 18 months to reach an agreement over lower gas prices.

“We set a very ambitious task for ourselves,” Azarov told a local government in the Kharkiv region.