U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday reiterated that he made no deal with Turkey to lift U.S. sanctions in exchange for the release of an American pastor who had been detained there and who returned to the United States over the weekend.
"We had no deal with Turkey," Trump told reporters at the White House. "I feel much differently about Turkey today than I felt about them two days ago. I have a very good feeling toward Turkey -- two days ago, I did not."
Andrew Brunson was arrested in December 2016 and charged in the Aegean province of Izmir with being a member of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), the group behind a defeated coup earlier that year.
After being transferred this July from jail to house arrest, on Friday Brunson was sentenced to just over three years in prison, but released due to time served and his good behavior in custody.
The charges against him included spying for both FETÖ and the PKK, a group recognized as terrorist by the U.S. and EU, and which is responsible for some 40,000 deaths in Turkey, including women and children.
Trump threatening and imposing sanctions on Turkey over the issue sparked bilateral tensions and spooked markets.
