It would be easy to misinterpret former Secretary of Defense William Cohen’s recent advocacy of quiet diplomacy in defeating terrorism as something less than the muscular response pledged by President Bush. But Mr. Cohen’s advice, which has been echoed by the president’s father, is solid and should be part of the long-term approach to defeating terrorism.

In the days after the Sept. 11 attack, the former president urged his son to tone down the “bellicose” language, according to press reports; the rhetoric of the current occupier of the White House has improved significantly since then. Mr. Cohen, who was in Bangor last weekend to serve as chairman of former Mayor Tim Woodcock’s run for the 2nd Congressional District seat, provided trenchant observations on why this is important and why the United States, like its opposition, should let its actions speak for themselves.

Pakistan’s government, by siding against Osama bin Laden, threatens its continuation. Anything but the rejection by Iran’s surely would have ended it. Even Saudi Arabia takes its own risks in its relationship with the United States. To keep governments friendly to the United States from toppling, “We must take into account the regimes that are sympathetic to us because they know their survival depends on our ability to secure them,” Mr. Cohen said. “But while they may know that, we can’t maintain a high profile and publicly insist on what they must do.”

As secretary of defense, Mr. Cohen sad he traveled regularly – and quietly – to the Middle East to build relationships in good times so that during crises the United States would have friends where it needed them. Now is the time to let those countries help by doing what they can, not by forcing them to take oaths of loyalty but by using their intelligence and their proximity to hunt down terrorists.

Mr. Cohen observed that the United States never will be able to declare victory in the war on terrorism, but can win the battles with outward-looking policies that keep this nation connected to the world. In no sense does this cast doubt on the need for military preparedness against Al Qaeda. It will be the unglamorous but essential long-term strategy of maintaining pressure on terrorism through an international coalition that is likely to have the most enduring success.