Britain, Belgium, Italy and France have recalled their ambassadors for consultations, while the United States has closed down its mission over the brutal crackdown on protests in Syria. "We have no plan at all from the (EU) External Action Service to withdraw our head of delegation in Damascus at this point in time," Michael Mann, spokesman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, told a news briefing. "We believe it's important to have people on the ground particularly as there is no free press in the country so that we can report and observe what is going on," he said. The EU's foreign service will continue "to do everything we can diplomatically" with the 27 EU states and international partners "to try and bring an end to this totally unacceptable situation," Mann said.