Comparative Study of Iran and Turkey Soft Power in Azerbaijan

The Republic of Azerbaijan is an important country in the South Caucasus which due to enjoying a geopolitical position in the energy sector, especially after the Soviet collapse, has been a battlefield for rivalries among big regional and trans-regional powers. This rivalry has been current in the areas of soft and hard power. Iran and Turkey are among the countries which due to their civilizational and cultural history as well as regional rivalry are present on the political and economic stage of Azerbaijan. Soft power has been a source for rivalry between these two countries in Azerbaijan. Accordingly, this research seeks to answer the question on what elements and coordinates Iran and Turkey soft power rely? The research findings show that both countries emphasize the lingual and religious elements in relation to this republic, and at the same time, the governing difference between Iran and Turkey and their foreign policy orientations have been impacting Azerbaijan’s soft power. Based on the results of the research, Turkey taps into the religious, lingual, ethnic and secular governance elements to further its soft power in Azerbaijan, and Iran’s soft power elements in the Republic of Azerbaijan include cultural-religious elements and a mediating approach in Azerbaijan’s disputes , like in the Karabach crisis. The research method is descriptive-analytical method.