The U.S. State Department said it welcomes North Korea’s release of Aijalon Gomes, a U.S. citizen who had been held by North Korea since January for illegal entry.

Department spokesman Philip Crowley issued the statement, also thanking former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, whose trip to Pyongyang resulted in the release of Gomes.

Crowley said Washington thanks North Korea for its decision to grant the American amnesty and is relieved that Gomes can now be safely reunited with his family.

Crowley once again stressed that Carter’s trip was a “private, humanitarian and unofficial mission solely for the purpose of brining Mr. Gomes home.”