Britain Links Syria to Plot, Cuts Ties; U.S. Recalls Envoy : Reagan Stops Short of Break in Relations

President Reagan withdrew the U.S. ambassador from Syria on Friday to dramatize American support for Britain’s decision to break diplomatic relations with Syria and to protest the Damascus regime’s involvement in an unsuccessful terrorist plot to plant a bomb aboard an Israeli airliner.

The decision to withdraw Ambassador William Eagleton, announced by White House spokesman Larry Speakes aboard Reagan’s Air Force One jetliner during a political campaign trip, stopped short of a full diplomatic rupture. The U.S. Embassy will remain open in Damascus544566884official.

Follows London Action

The United States took its action only hours after a jury in London’s Old Bailey criminal court convicted Nezar Hindawi, 32, on charges of trying to smuggle a bomb aboard an El Al Israel Airlines plane during a stop in London on its flight from New York to Tel Aviv. The prosecution contended that Hindawi, a Jordanian citizen, operated under orders from the Syrian Embassy in London.

U.S. Applauds Action

Britain severed diplomatic relations with Damascus almost as soon as the jury verdict was announced.

“We applaud the reaction of Her Majesty’s government,” Speakes said. “We support the British decision. Our ambassador is being withdrawn from Syria. In the coming days, we will be in close consultation with Her Majesty’s government” regarding possible additional steps. He declined to say, however, what other action the United States might take.

“A state that encourages and takes part in terrorism isolates itself from the civilized world,” Speakes said of Syria. “The United States will consult and cooperate with others to bring practical meaning to the isolation--diplomatically, politically, economically.”

A senior Administration official said that U.S. Ambassador-at-Large L. Paul Bremer, the chief State Department expert on terrorism, would consult with Britain on future moves.

Canadian Envoy Recalled

In response to the British government’s call for a concerted international effort to isolate Syria, Canada also called its ambassador home from Damascus for consultations, a diplomatic sign1634476143than indefinite withdrawal of the ambassador.

The United States, Britain and other industrial nations agreed during the economic summit in Tokyo in May to support each other in efforts to combat international terrorism. Britain’s decision to break relations with Syria was the immediate reason for the U.S. action, but Washington long has considered Syria to be a supporter of terrorist groups.

Secretary of State George P. Shultz, in a speech in June, 1985, said that Syria, Libya, Iran and North Korea had formed a “league of terror” that finances and trains terrorists around the world. The State Department has long included Syria on its list of nations that support terrorism.

However, the Reagan Administration had been reluctant to interrupt diplomatic relations with Damascus because it had hoped that Syrian President Hafez Assad would use his influence to help gain the freedom of American hostages held in Lebanon. Moreover, the United States wanted to maintain some influence with Syria so that it could play a peacemaker role between Syria and Israel.

Regrets U.S. Move

The Damascus regime described the U.S. move Friday as “regrettable” but took no immediate action in response. It would be impossible for Syria to engage in a tit-for-tat reprisal because there has not been a Syrian ambassador in Washington since June, when Rafic Jouejati returned to his country in a normal rotation.

Shultz summoned the Syrian charge d’affaires, Bushra Kanafani, to the State Department in mid-afternoon to receive the official word of the withdrawal of Eagleton.

Kanafani, repeating a claim made by the government in Damascus, said that Syria had nothing to do with the attempt to bomb the El Al airliner. She insisted that Israeli intelligence faked the incident to discredit Syria.

A senior Administration official traveling with Reagan said the withdrawal of an ambassador “is regarded in diplomatic language as an extremely serious measure. It is a sign of great displeasure with that country’s policies.”