Cape Town: President A P J Abdul Kalam began his visit to South Africa expressing the hope that India and Pakistan "will become friends."

On the first visit by an Indian Head of State to South Africa, the place where Mahatma Gandhi launched the Satyagraha movement, Kalam said European countries fought each other for over a 100 years.

"But today there is European Union and there is common currency," the President said at a reception given in his honour by the Indian High Commissioner S S Mukherjee. "Like that one day will come it will happen here. We (India and Pakistan) too will become friends", he said in reply to a query.

Terming Kalam's visit as "great and significant", Mukherjee said, "it is not only ceremonial but also has a substantive aspect."

The Presidential visit was significant because it coincided with the decade-long relationship and 100th anniversary of establishment of historical links by Mahatma Gandhi.

Both India and South Africa share commonality of views and cooperate very closely in international arena, he said.

Kalam being a special invitee at the Pan-African Parliament meeting showed India's commitment to Africa's development and friendship, Mukherjee said.

He said the issue of India-Brazil-South Africa trilateral cooperation was bound to figure during Kalam's meeting with his South African counterpart Thabo Mbeki.