President Donald Trump said on Saturday the release of U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson after two years in Turkey’s custody was a “tremendous step” toward improved relations with Turkey, but he denied cutting a deal with Ankara.
“The only deal, if you could call it a deal, is a psychological one. We feel much differently about Turkey today than we did yesterday, and I think we have a chance of really becoming much closer to Turkey,” Trump told reporters during an Oval Office meeting with Brunson.
A Turkish court on Friday sentenced Brunson, who had been charged with links to Kurdish militants and supporters of a U.S.-based Muslim cleric, to more than three years in prison but said he would not serve any further time because he had already been detained since October 2016.
The Emergency Election Sale is now live! Get 30% to 60% off our most popular products today!