WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he looked forward to Saturday’s Oval Office meeting with Andrew Brunson, the American pastor whose release after nearly two years of detention in Turkey was a diplomatic triumph for Trump. Trump also thanked Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had resisted the demands of Trump and other high-level U.S. officials for Brunson’s release. Trump said the U.S. greatly appreciated Brunson’s release and said the move “will lead to good, perhaps great, relations” between the U.S. and fellow NATO ally Turkey. “I’m really proud to report that earlier today we secured the release of pastor Andrew Brunson from Turkey,” Trump said. Turkish officials suspect Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi government, was killed in the consulate; Saudi officials deny it.

Source: National Post October 13, 2018 06:22 UTC