Christopher Urges Probe of Hostage Deal Charge

Former Deputy Secretary of State Warren Christopher, who negotiated the release of American hostages from Iran in 1980, has urged Congress to investigate charges that former President Ronald Reagan’s election campaign made a deal to delay the captives’ freedom.

Christopher said he is not convinced that the allegations are true, but said “there are enough suspicious circumstances” to justify a formal inquest.

Democrats in the Senate and House have said they plan to investigate the charges, which have been made by several arms dealers, a former Reagan Administration official and a former aide to President Jimmy Carter, who was in office when the hostages were seized. But Republican members of both houses have resisted attempts to launch a full-scale probe.

Christopher, now chairman of the Los Angeles law firm O’Melveny & Myers, also was chairman of the special commission to investigate the Los Angeles Police Department last year.

He made his statement in a letter to the New York Times, which he made available to the Los Angeles Times on Friday. The New York paper has not published the letter.

“While not having reached a conclusion on the ultimate issue, I believe that there are enough suspicious circumstances to warrant a full and fair bipartisan investigation by the Congress,” Christopher wrote.

“Among the puzzling events are the heavy arms transfers to Iran shortly after President Reagan took office, and the last-minute delay in the release of the 52 Americans (on Jan. 20, 1981) despite repeated assurances to me personally . . . that the hostages would be released before President Carter left office,” he wrote.

Although the terms of the hostages’ release had been agreed to several days before, Iran freed the captives only after Reagan took the oath of office.

Reagan and President Bush, who was his vice president, have denied that there was a deal to delay the hostages’ release.

Christopher wrote to the New York Times because of an article in the newspaper by Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) that quoted him as opposing a congressional investigation. McConnell’s assertion was incorrect, he said.