Nation: A Strategically Located Ally

Resuming full-scale shipments of arms to Turkey will strengthen NATO's southern flank. Almost twice the size of California, with a population of about 42 million, Turkey shares a 370-mile border with the Soviet Union. The 500,000-man Turkish armed forces are deservedly renowned for their ferocity. With more than 300 warplanes and nearly 3,000 tanks, they help tie down about 26 divisions of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact, which otherwise might be deployed against NATO forces in Central Europe. Its location enables Turkey to monitor Soviet warships, including submarines, passing from the Black Sea into the Mediterranean and to deny overflight rights to...

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