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Azerbaijani nationalism was relatively slow to develop under the communists. "Rather than imagining themselves as part of a continuous national tradition, like the Georgians and Armenians, the Muslims of Transcaucasia saw themselves as part of the larger Muslim world, the umma."
After the end of World War II, Azerbaijani nationalism was controlled by lessening the influence of Islam.
After Nagorno-Karabakh War
During the Soviet era, Armenians and Azerbaijanis coexisted peacefully. When the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh broke out, however, this changed radically. The initial Armenian claims to Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan yielding from Armenian nationalism were laid in late 1987.
Starting in 1998, Armenia began accusing Azerbaijan of embarking on a campaign of destroying a cemetery of finely carved Armenian khachkars in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. On May 30, 2006, Azerbaijan barred the European Parliament from inspecting and examining the ancient burial site. Charles Tannock, British Conservative Party foreign affairs spokesman in the European parliament, stated: "This is very similar to the Buddha statues destroyed by the Taliban. They have concreted the area over and turned it into a military camp. If they have nothing to hide then we should be allowed to inspect the terrain." Hannes Swoboda, an Austrian Socialist MEP and member of the committee barred from examining the site, said he hopes a visit can be arranged in the autumn. He stated that "if they do not allow us to go, we have a clear hint that something bad has happened. If something is hidden we want to ask why. It can only be because some of the allegations are true." He also warned: "One of the major elements of any country that wants to come close to Europe is that the cultural heritage of neighbors is respected."
A key advocate of Azerbaijani nationalism is Farida Mammadova, who has made anti-Armenian statements. In response to desecration of Azerbaijani holy sanctuary Agadede south of Yerevan in 2005, Farida Mammadova said "it is known, that on whole planet exactly the Armenian people is distinguished by the absence of spiritual and other human values. And it is them who are used to appropriate the cultures of other nations while living in another state".
According to Thomas de Waal, Mammadova has grasped the Albanian theory after studying the history of Caucasian Albania and used it to push the Armenians out of Caucasus altogether. She has placed Caucasian Albania on the territory of modern Republic of Armenia: all the territories, churches and monasteries in Republic of Armenia have appeared Albanian. Mamaedova had visited the Gandzasar monastery in 1975 and read the inscription on facade "I Hasan-Jalal, built this church for my people of Aghvank..." referring to an ancient name of Albania.