Azerbaijan threatens to shut down Russian and some Turkish TV broadcasts

Turkish channels could also face problems if they refuse to broadcast Azerbaijani programs, said Nushirevan Maharamli, the head of the state National Broadcasting Council.

The move comes amid a strain in bilateral ties between Moscow and Baku over Russian state gas monopoly Gazprom's move to sharply increase price for its gas supplies to Azerbaijan - a hike Azerbaijani authorities have rejected.

Maharamli said authorities could end broadcasts of Russia's state Channel One and Rossiya television in Azerbaijan starting next year.

He said that in order to stay on the air, the two stations must help organize Azerbaijani TV broadcasts in Russia where a large number of Azerbaijani migrants live.

Maharamli said Azerbaijani authorities could also ban broadcasts of Turkey's Samanyolu and Channel D stations if they fail to cooperate in broadcasting Azerbaijani programs on a reciprocal basis.

He said another Turkish TV station, TRT-1, could continue broadcasts because it already had pledged to start broadcasting Azerbaijani programs in Turkey.

In a separate development Tuesday, the Media Council of Azerbaijan, a media freedom watchdog, urged the nation's interior minister to quickly investigate the beating of an opposition journalist.

Nicat Huseynov, a journalist with the opposition newspaper Azadliq (Freedom), was hospitalized after being beaten by four assailants Monday as he left his home for work. The Assosiated Press

/The International Herald Tribune/