ABSTRACT
The states of Central Europe or the Baltics, Azerbaijan had precious little history or tradition of independent statehood to fall back on. Understanding the politics of a country, especially one with multiple cross-cutting linkages and underdeveloped state institutions, such as Azerbaijan, requires understanding the factors that determine power in that country that is, the bases of power, and the nature of power. The basis of power in any political system is conditioned by a number of factors, which can range from the appeal of ideologies to the use of brute force, and include personal charisma as well as other claims on loyalty to a leadership based on ethnicity, religion, region, tribe, or descent. In Azerbaijan, ideology played an important role in the period straddling the end of the Soviet Union and the first years of independence, roughly 1988-93. Nationalism and liberal democracy were important elements in the Azerbaijani Popular Front's revolution against the former Communist leadership.
