Turkey has a PR problem in this country. This is the result of three factors. The first is the innate modesty of the Turks themselves. They are not a gaudy or boastful people; and since their support for the U.S., and for NATO, wells up from an implacable conviction that Turkey's interests are inseparable from those of a U.S.-led West, they prefer to go about their business quietly.
Besides, the Turkish end of the alliance was not forged opportunistically, or to win cheap brownie points, or infusions of cash or arms or aid. It endures because the Turks want it to endure, and it endures even though Turkey is treated with contumely by the European Union, a collection of states that, barring Britain, has done far less for U.S. security and strategic well-being than Turkey has. Ask Donald Rumsfeld if he'd prefer a world without France or one without Turkey. See what he says!

The second factor working against a better appreciation of Turkey's contribution is the small size of the Turkish-American population. The most liberal estimates put it at 300,000, though the truest figure might be nearer 200,000. Although they are concentrated in a few urban nodes, such as New York and Chicago, they haven't the collective muscle in any one place to form a voting bloc to which politicians must pay obligatory court. So they're ignored. Or worse.

And here's where the third factor comes in. It is Turkey's misfortune--and the misfortune of Turkish-Americans--that there exists in the U.S. a range of Armenian and Greek organizations that dedicate themselves to damaging Turkey's reputation. I was at a conference of Turkish-Americans in Chicago over the weekend and heard numerous tales of harassment from ordinary Turkish professionals who do their best to make Turkey's case in the U.S. A gentleman who runs a Turkish Web site recounted his experiences of death threats from Armenians, as well as instances of hacking into his, and others', sites.

Because of the vocal, and virulent, anti-Turkey organizations that roam unchecked in the American political landscape, politicians are afraid to espouse the cause of Turkey. Ironically, the anti-Turkey rancor in this country, at least where it comes from Greek-Americans, is increasingly anachronistic; in reality, Greece and Turkey are growing closer to each other politically, and it was noticed by all, at a conference I attended in Istanbul earlier this year, that George Papandreou, the Greek foreign minister, addressed his Turkish counterpart in terms so warm one might have mistaken him for the latter's long-lost brother.

May I, therefore, make a suggestion? The bipartisan Turkey Caucus in Congress consists of a mere 20 members (it is headed by the Democrat Robert Wexler, who, though quite insufferable during the Florida presidential recount, proves with his support for Turkey that he's not all bad); this is a piffling size. So why can't those congressmen and -women who constitute the informal Israel caucus take on Turkey's cause?

Israel, like the U.S., counts Turkey as a loyal friend. Muslim Turkey's diplomatic relations with the Jewish state have always been genuine and comprehensive--and conducted at the risk of great opprobrium in the ummah, or the Muslim world--unlike the ersatz diplomatic relations Israel has with Egypt or Jordan. What is more, the relations rest on a bedrock of people-to-people affection, and not on some opportunistic calculus. Turkey is alone in the Muslim world--although one must remember that the country, though a state of Muslims, is not a Muslim state--as a place that offers a haven to Jews, and in which Jews live and work without fear. (It was a revelation, when I was in Istanbul, to find that one of the most respected newspaper columnists in the country is called Sami Kohen--the "Cohen," here, being spelled in accordance with Turkish orthography.)

Those Americans who are Israel's friends must declare themselves Turkey's friends too. And those American politicians who work sedulously to ensure the protection of Israeli interests must do the same for Turkey. For Turkey's security affects our security, and our security ensures Israel's. So let the connections be made plain, and obvious, and let them be pursued to their logical conclusion.

March with Turkey--on Saturday, and after.