Islamabad, Sep 21 (IANS): The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Prince William and Kate Middleton will pay an official visit to Pakistan from October 14-18, the Kensington Palace has announced.

"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will attend a special event at the Aga Khan Centre on 2nd October, hosted by His Highness The Aga Khan. The event falls ahead of TRH's official visit to Pakistan, which will take place between 14th - 18th October" Dawn news quoted the Palace as saying on Twitter on Friday.

Earlier in June, an official statement from the royal family had announced that the couple were to visit Pakistan later this year upon the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Prince William and Kate's trip would have been the first official visit by a member of the British royal family to Pakistan since 2006 when Prince Charles and Camilla had travelled to the South Asian country.

Previously, Queen Elizabeth II had visited in 1961 and 1997, and the late Princess Diana in 1991.

Britain is home to more than a million people of Pakistani origin, making it the largest Pakistani diaspora in Europe, Dawn news reported.

Bilateral trade was worth almost $4 billion in 2017, with the UK currently Pakistan's third-largest source of foreign investment after China and the Netherlands, according to Britain's Department of International Trade.

British Airways also resumed flights to Pakistan earlier this year after suspending operations due to security fears over a decade ago.