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"It
is the right thing for them to do, it is the humanitarian thing
for Turkey to do," Pompeo told the annual Jewish Institute for
National Security of America (JINSA) dinner in Washington. "I am
very hopeful that before too long he and his wife will be able
to return to the United States."
Asked what his release would mean for U.S-Turkey relations,
Pompeo said: "It is an important step."
Brunson's case has become the most divisive issue in a worsening
diplomatic dispute between Ankara and Washington that has
triggered U.S. sanctions and tariffs against Turkey.
Brunson is charged with links to Kurdish militants and
supporters of Fethullah Gulen, the cleric blamed by Turkey for a
failed coup attempt in 2016. He has denied the accusation - as
has Gulen - and Washington has demanded his immediate release.
Jailed or held under house arrest since October 2016, Brunson
faces up to 35 years in jail if convicted. Last month the main
prosecutor in his trial was replaced, a move his lawyer
cautiously welcomed, saying it might be a sign of changing
political will.
Despite pressure from the Trump administration, Turkish
President Tayyip Erdogan has insisted that he has no sway over
the judiciary and that the courts will decide on Brunson's fate.
(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Toni Reinhold and
Peter Cooney)
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