A Muslim leader who happens to be named "Bambang" may not seem like a promising prospect for the United States. But the president of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, is proving to be an effective fighter against the Islamic radicals in his country. Joshua Kurlantzick's article in the current issue of Commentary provides the details. The article is called "Where the War On Terror Is Succeeding."

While former president Megawati Sukarnoputri fiercely denounced the Islamic radicals and terrorists, Bambang is actually working to destroy them. He is doing it through intelligence agencies and military strikes. He works closely with regional governments through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. He has mobilized the traditional Muslims against the radical Muslims. He has avoided looking like a pawn of the United States by emphasizing the threat to Indonesian sovereignty and to Islam itself. Public opinion in Indonesia is behind Bambang, and in the mosques, Muslim clergy routinely denounce Al Qaeda and its allies.

Here are Muslims we can learn from, and work with. When alliances are based on mutual interests, such as the trade relationship between the U.S. and India, no one can complain that either side is being used. Indonesia may be a more viable model than Turkey for Islam's future. Jakarta may be more important than Ankara in fighting the war on terror.