Saudi Arabia and the US are negotiating a defense accord.

US -KSA – (Special Correspondent / Web Desk) – Saudi Arabia is in talks with the United States on a defense agreement, which it intends to finalize when Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visits the White House next month, according to the Financial Times, citing sources.

A senior Trump administration official told the Financial Times that there were discussions of signing something when the crown prince arrived, but the details were still being worked out.

According to the FT, the proposed accord was comparable to the previous US-Qatar treaty, which committed to see any armed strike on Qatar as a danger to the US.  The US-Qatar accord came after Israel attempted to kill Hamas officials in Doha with an air strike last month.

The US State Department told the FT that defence co-operation with the kingdom was a “strong bedrock of our regional strategy,” but declined to comment on details of the potential deal.

The US State Department, the White House and the Saudi government did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on the FT report.

Last month, Pakis­tan and Saudi Arabia entered into a landmark mutual defence agreement, under which any aggression against one state will be considered an attack on both. The pact was signed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman at the Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh.

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The timing of the accord, coming on the heels of an Arab summit that signalled a shift towards collective security — in the wake of Israel’s attack on Qatar — hints that it is rooted in current world affairs and reflects the defence concerns of both countries. It also came just months after a deadly India-Pakistan conflict in May, as well as the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June.