Azeri officer Ramil Safarov entered the Armenian's dormitory room and struck him repeatedly with an axe. Both were attending an English language course run under the auspices of NATO's Partnership for Peace.

A lower court sentenced Safarov to life imprisonment on charges of premeditated murder with extreme cruelty.

"The first-degree court ruling has been upheld," said Gyorgy Felkai, spokesman of the Budapest Court of Appeal.

The judge was quoted by the Hungarian news agency MTI as saying Safarov killed the victim because he was Armenian. Reuters