"The Nagorno Karabakh conflict will not be settled peacefully," said Azerbaijani journalists at a seminar in Tbilisi.

The Center for European Journalism recently organized a three-day seminar in Tbilisi on the subject "Working in a Hostile Environment", dedicated to organizing the work of journalists in conflict zones. The seminar was chaired by two British journalists - Wilma Goodapple of the Times and Michael Griffin,a free-lance reporter. Journalists from Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia (Association of Investigative Journalists) took part in the seminar.

Although the question of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict was not a topic of discussion, during contacts between Armenian and Azerbaijani journalists a discussion of the issue took place. Namik Ibrahimov, a reporter from the Zerkalo newspaper stated that there is an obvious warlike mood in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijanis are not prepared for just any compromise. It seems to them more likely that the conflict will be settled militarily. Even if the occupied territories are returned, Azerbaijan will not be ready to grant an independent status to Nagorno Karabakh, he said.

The seminar mainly discussed the issue of life and equipment insurance for journalists in zones of armed conflicts.

In the CIS countries no tradition of such insurance exists, therefore the British journalists suggested that their Caucasian partners insure their lives and equipment before leaving for zones of armed conflicts through the organization Journalists without Frontiers, which has developed common regulations for journalists. "In the existing financial conditions of our mass media this is impossible", stated Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian journalists.

The Armenian participants at the seminar were surprised by the fact that a committee on the protection of state secrets was recently created in Azerbaijan. "The functions of this committee are reminiscent of the GlavLit of the Soviet period. Prior to publication, for example, Azerbaijani journalists are required to send any information to this committee, which will reach a decision within a week. If, in the opinion of the committee, the information to be published contains state secrets, then it must not be published by the news outlet.