The American soldier who sprinted into North Korea across its heavily fortified border two months ago has arrived back in the US in San Antonio, Texas, video appears to show.

Pte Travis King’s release was secured with the help of Sweden and China, the White House said on Wednesday.

North Korea said it would expel Pte King earlier the same day.

Pte King appeared to walk off a plane in San Antonio.

Dressed in what seemed to be civilian clothes, he spoke briefly to people waiting on the tarmac and shook hands with one person before being led into a building.

North Korea abruptly announced on Wednesday that it would expel Pte King.

It was not clear why the North – which has tense relations with Washington over Pyongyang’s nuclear programme, support for Russia’s war in Ukraine and other issues – agreed to turn him over or why the soldier had fled in the first place.

Pte King, who had served in South Korea, ran into North Korea while on a civilian tour of a border village on July 18, becoming the first American confirmed to be detained in the North in nearly five years.

At the time, Pte King was supposed to be heading to Fort Bliss, Texas, following his release from prison in South Korea on an assault conviction.

The soldier’s release almost certainly does not end his troubles. He has been declared Awol from the US army, a status that can be punished by detention in military jail, forfeiture of pay or a dishonourable discharge.

On Wednesday, Swedish officials took Pte King to the Chinese border, where he was met by the US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, the Swedish ambassador to China, and at least one US defence department official.

Biden administration officials insisted they provided no concessions to North Korea to secure the soldier’s release.

Pte King was flown to a US military base in South Korea before being returned to America.

The White House has not addressed North Korean state media reports that Pte King fled because of his dismay about racial discrimination and inequality in the military and US society.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency reported that Pte King made such complaints, but verifying that is impossible.