U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland attends a House Intelligence Committee hearing as part of the impeachment inquiry into U.S. President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., November 20, 2019. REUTERS/Loren Elliott

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, who testified on Wednesday in the House impeachment inquiry, never told Secretary of State Mike Pompeo he believed President Donald Trump was linking Ukraine aid to investigations of political opponents, a State Department spokeswoman said.

“Any suggestion to the contrary is flat out false,” spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.