French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian will hold talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Oct 5, in which the two will aim to work on restoring confidence between the two countries, said a statement from Le Drians office. Diplomatic relations between the United States and France hit a low point last month, after Australia cancelled a previous $40 billion French-designed submarine deal, to build instead at least eight nuclear-powered submarines with US and British technology. In retaliation, France briefly withdrew its ambassador to the United States, although the diplomat has since returned to Washington DC. US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron have also held talks since that row over the nuclear submarine deal broke out, and have pledged to begin "in-depth consultations" on the two countries relations.