The United States and Saudi Arabia are close to a final agreement on a bilateral defence pact after the US national security adviser made significant progress in talks with the Saudis over the weekend, the White House said on Monday. White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the two sides are “closer than we’ve ever been” on a bilateral agreement that is now “near final.” US and Saudi negotiators are seeking to complete work on a bilateral accord expected to call for formal US guarantees to defend the kingdom and Saudi access to more advanced US weaponry in return for halting …