U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday called France a "vital partner" in Asia after Paris was infuriated by a U.S.-UK pact with Australia that scuppered a major French submarine deal.
"I want to emphasize that there is no regional divide separating the interests of our Atlantic and our Pacific partners," Blinken told reporters.
"We want to find every opportunity to deepen our transatlantic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and around the world," Blinken said.