US-France talks in past 24 hours 'very positive, productive': Blinken

Washington [US], October 6 (ANI/Sputnik): The discussions the US delegation had in Paris with their French colleagues were positive and productive, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said of the confidence-building measures on Wednesday.
The US delegation headed by Blinken is visiting Paris this week to discuss confidence-building measures in the wake of the recent Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) submarine deal that caused a significant strain in relations with France.
"The conversations we had in the last 24 hours were very positive, very productive and reflect a lot of work that is in progress, the work that was tasked by President [Joe] Biden and [French] President [Emmanuel] Macron," Blinken said during a press conference.
On Tuesday, Macron and Blinken met in Paris for the first time after the crisis in bilateral relations in light of Australia's withdrawal from the USD 66 billion submarine deal with France due to joining the AUKUS partnership in mid-September and the decision to be supplied with the US nuclear-powered submarines.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian described the decision as a "stab in the back" and said the trust between the allies was severely undermined. (ANI/Sputnik)