This autumn J. Ralston visited Georgia and Azerbaijan.

The repressions against religious minorities become tougher in Azerbaijan. Recently the authorities prohibited the activity of the Baptist church on the territory of the country. Concerned with the situation, the Secretary General of the World Baptist Alliance, Denton Lots sent a message to U.S. President George Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell and other high-ranking U.S. officials urging them to intervene and to prevent the repressions towards citizens with untraditional for Azerbaijan religion.