Azerbaijani journalist covering war in Ukraine - guest of Report Media School

Mubariz Aslanov, special correspondent for Eastern Europe of Report News Agency, Baku TV, met with students of Report Media School.

The journalist who recently returned from the conflict zone in Ukraine spoke about the real events he encountered:

"Unfortunately, the profile of my activity in Ukraine has changed a little. It was a war that the whole world did not expect. Although there was considerable warning until February 24, Ukraine was not ready for Russian intervention. I filmed in Severodonetsk, Luhansk region, on February 23. Although I wanted to go to Mariupol from there, I changed my mind. They also entered Mariupol and Kherson very quickly. Ukraine's defense system was not ready for this."

Aslanov noted the difficulties a journalist experienced in the conflict zone:

"The conditions of war are minimal. You can't film everywhere. If you take a picture of the newly hit place and upload it to the Internet, the other party can look at those shots and get a more accurate shot. There is a lot of checking depending on the situation, but you have to keep your cool. A small emotion can lead to a big problem. My difficulties were not minor. I even went without bread for 20 days. I ate whatever I found."

Mubariz Aslanov was born in the Beylagan district in 1982. He graduated from the Faculty of Social Sciences and Psychology of Baku State University in 2005 at the master's level. He served in the military in 2005-2006. He started working as a journalist in 2008. He worked in media organizations such as Azadinform IA, APA, Report IA. In 2019-2020, he worked in the press service of AzTV. Since 2020, he has been a special correspondent for Eastern Europe of Report News Agency, Baku TV.