WASHINGTONA Senior State Department official went before House impeachment investigators Saturday and said that top officials stymied a show of solidarity for the former U. S. ambassador to Ukraine after President Trump had her removed, according to a person familiar with his closed-door testimony. Philip Reeker, the acting assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, was also present for a White House interagency meeting during which a Department of Defense official raised concerns about a decision by the White House to hold The man familiar with the testimony said.

The House Intelligence Committee subpoenaed by Mr. Reekers’ testimony after the State Department directed him not to appear for his deposition scheduled Saturday, according to an official working on the impeachment inquiry. The official said the State Department was also attempting to limit any testimony that did occur, and that Mr. Reeker was complying with the subpoena and answering questions.

Mr. Reeker was named to the job in March, around the time Mr. Trump ordered the removal of the

Marie Yovovitch,

The U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. Mr. Trumps personal lawyer

Rudy Giuliani

and others have admitted Ms. Yovanovitch of undermining the president abroad and of obstructing efforts to persuade Kiev to investigate former Vice President

Joe Biden.

Ms. Yovanovitch had a primary concern from his first week on the job, the person familiar said, relaying Mr. Reekers position on the issue.

The events surrounding the decision to hold up aid to Ukraine are a central focus of the House impeachment inquiry. Mr. Trump has denied wrongdoing and has called the probe a witch hunt.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D., Mass.), a member of the House Oversight Committee, said Saturday afternoon that the panels were learning more from Mr. Reeker than they had anticipated, extending the length of the Deposit. He declined to elaborate on the substance of Mr. Reekers ‘ testimony.

He’s being helpful in some respects, he’s corroborating previous witnesses and their testimony, he said. It’s a much richer reservoir of information that we originally expected.

Rep. Mark Meadows (R., N. C.), a top ally of the presidents on Capitol Hill, said that Mr. Reeker is a minor player in the overall Ukraine saga. He also declined to comment on the substance of Mr. Reekers testimony.

Ukraine was one of dozens of countries that he oversees, so to the extent he was copied on an email here or there, that’s pretty much his involvement, Mr. Meadows said.

Do you think Secretary of State Mike Pompeo should have shown more support for Marie Yovanovitch, the former ambassador to Ukraine? Why or why not? Join the conversation below.

On Tuesday, Bill Taylor, the acting U. S. ambassador to Ukraine, said in his prepared testimony Mr. Trump made nearly $400 million in aid contingent on the Ukrainian president investigating Mr. Biden and Ukrainian alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. election. Democrats who heard the testimony called it damning, while some Republicans argued that there was nothing new in it.

Mr. Reeker was named to his current role when there were rumblings of Mr. Giulianis’s interference in Ukraine-related affairs, including efforts to have Ms. Yovanovitch removed from her post, but the ambassador was recalled almost as soon as he started in the job, and he was virtually powerless to stop it, the person familiar with his testimony said.

Mr. Reekers deputy, George Kent, expressed concerns to him and later forwarded them to the State Department counsel T. Ulrich Brechbuhl, a close ally to the Secretary of state of State

Mike Pompeo,

Mr. Reeker, a 25-year friend of Ms. Yovanovitchs, tried to rally support for her in the form of an internal proactive statement, but was not urged to by top State Department officials, who noted that Ms. Yovanovitchs removal was a priority for the president, the person Familiar with his testimony said.

Ms. Yovanovitchs removal from Kyiv in the spring has become a point of interest in the impeachment inquiry.

Mr. Reekers position required constant travel, so much of the day-to-day Ukraine-related discussions were deferred to Mr. Kent, a person familiar with his testimony said, and policy issues were dominated by

Gordon Sondland,

U. S. ambassador to the European Union; Energy Secretary and Mr Rick Perry. Giuliani.

However, the person said, Mr. Reeker became concerned when, during a July 31 policy coordination committee meeting at the White House, Laura Cooper, deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, raised concerns over a hold on Ukraine aid by The White House and the Emphasized that the Pentagon was running out of time to release the funds before the end of the fiscal year.

Volodymyr zelensky,

to look into Mr. Biden and his son and said he would direct Mr. Giuliani and Attorney General

William Barr

to contact Mr. zelensky to help him in a possible investigation, according to a rough transcript released by the White House.

? Courtney McBride Andrew Duehren and Jesse Naranjo contributed to this article.

Copyright 2019 Dow Jones