The relationship between the United States and Turkey has never been an easy one. When members of the Youth Association of Turkey, a far-left anti-American student group, roughed up three US Navy sailors in civilian clothes on Nov. 12 in Istanbul near where their warship was docked, it made clear the delicate nature of the relationship.

While the Turkish authorities stayed silent about the incident, and the United States' condemnation of the incident was a measured one. After all, this was not an incident between the two states. “These attackers bring great discredit upon the Turks and the Turkish reputation for hospitality, which is well known,” Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, said Nov. 12. “We enjoy a strong relationship with our NATO ally in Turkey” and “we don’t see this as something that will disrupt that strong relationship.”

The US Embassy in Ankara was also quick to echo the same sentiment through the tweets it rapidly sent out. “The video showing an assault on three visiting American sailors is appalling. While we respect the right to peaceful protest and freedom of expression, we condemn today’s attack in Istanbul, and have no doubt the vast majority of Turks would join us in rejecting an action that so disrespects Turkey’s reputation for hospitality.”

The US Navy also expressed in a written statement that the sailors were able to remove themselves from the situation “without sustaining injuries and are safely back aboard USS Ross.”