By Vivian Salama and Peter Nicholas 

WASHINGTON -- An American pastor held for two years in Turkey on terrorism charges arrived back in the U.S. on Saturday, greeting President Trump in the Oval Office and ending a diplomatic standoff that jeopardized relations between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies.

Andrew Brunson's plane touched down at Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington, D.C. around noon following a stop in Germany for what President Trump said was a medical evaluation.

Safe on U.S. soil, Mr. Brunson headed to the White House where he and his family met with Mr. Trump, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and a string of White House officials and lawmakers who had helped engineer his release.

"From a Turkish prison to the White House in 24 hours. That's not bad," said Mr. Trump, with Mr. Brunson sitting next to him in the yellow chair normally reserved for visiting heads of state. Over the summer, Mr. Brunson was moved from jail to house arrest.

In a moment that played out before TV cameras, Mr. Brunson knelt down, put his left arm around the president's back and said a prayer, asking God to give Mr. Trump "supernatural wisdom" and to "protect him from slander from enemies."

Mr. Brunson's homecoming amounted to a victory for Mr. Trump ahead of the midterm elections that will determine whether his party retains control of Congress. Evangelical Christians, an important part of Mr. Trump's political base, closely followed his plight.

Mr. Trump invested considerable strategic capital in freeing Mr. Brunson, using a mix of economic sanctions, public pressure and face-to-face talks with his Turkish counterpart. After the high-stakes diplomatic maneuvering, he risked looking ineffectual had Turkey kept Mr. Brunson locked up.

Mr. Trump denied that he had cut any deals to win Mr. Brunson's release, though he made clear he anticipates that relations between the two countries will improve now that the pastor is back home. Releasing Mr. Brunson was "a tremendous step" toward improved American-Turkish relations, Mr. Trump said.

"We've been negotiating long and hard," Mr. Trump said. "We do not pay ransom in this country -- at least any longer." He didn't elaborate.

Savoring the outcome, Mr. Trump suggested he has a better record than his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, in winning the release of Americans detained abroad.

He invited Mr. Brunson's wife and children to speak while also playfully pressing the family for an endorsement of sorts.

"Could I ask you one question? Who did you vote for?" Mr. Trump said.

"I would like to say I sent in an absentee ballot from prison," Mr. Brunson said.

"It's a little unfair; I knew the answer," Mr. Trump said.

The homecoming for Mr. Brunson, a North Carolina Presbyterian pastor, unfolds in the shadow of the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist who hasn't been seen since he entered a Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Turkey has been looking for U.S. support in confronting Saudi Arabia over Mr. Khashoggi, who Turkish authorities allege was killed by Saudi operatives. Saudi Arabia has denied any involvement.

From Turkey's perspective, freeing Mr. Brunson could also give the country more leverage with the U.S. over Saudi Arabia., U.S. officials said.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), a member of the Armed Services Committee, said in an interview: "This was a real barrier to having a normal relationship with Turkey. This allows us to move forward."

Mr. Brunson was arrested in October 2016 and charged with supporting terrorist groups. He denied the accusations.

Mr. Trump took up the cause, using his Twitter feed and diplomatic tools to get Turkey to relent. In May, he met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House and urged him to quickly release Mr. Brunson, according to a White House readout of the meeting.

In July, Mr. Trump tweeted: "A total disgrace that Turkey will not release a respected U.S. Pastor, Andrew Brunson, from prison. He has been held hostage far too long."

The following month, the U.S. imposed sanctions on Turkish ministers. While Mr. Erdogan denounced the measures, he also privately looked for ways to settle the dispute, Turkish officials said.

With signs pointing to Mr. Brunson's imminent release, his lawyers were hopeful late this week but also wary. Turkey had appeared on the verge of freeing Mr. Brunson before, only to prolong his detention, they said. At a hearing on Friday, a Turkish court found Mr. Brunson guilty of aiding terror groups but sentenced him to time served, setting in motion his trip home.

After Mr. Brunson's plane touched down, his attorney, Jay Sekulow -- who is also a lawyer for Mr. Trump in the Russia investigation -- sent a reporter a one-word text message: "Landed."

Write to Vivian Salama at vivian.salama@wsj.com and Peter Nicholas at peter.nicholas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 13, 2018 17:24 ET (21:24 GMT)