ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia would sign a security cooperation agreement later this month, officials said on Saturday.

The accord would be signed during the visit of Interior Minister Mohammad bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to Pakistan. The trip is tentatively planned for last week of January.

It would be second high-profile visit from Riyadh to Islamabad this month. Foreign Minister Saud Al Faisal is arriving here on Monday on a two-day trip.

During the interior minister’s visit, the two countries would also sign agreements on combating trafficking and smuggling and transfer of prisoners

Saudi Ambassador Abdul Aziz Ibrahim Al Ghadeer met Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan to discuss the Saudi minister’s visit.

Chaudhry Nisar told the envoy that the visit would add a new dimension to the already close relations between the two countries.

The signing of the accords and visits by the Saudi ministers in a month mark intensification of bilateral ties that remained lukewarm during the PPP government.