Hugo Chavez's Health Leads to Postponement of Latin American Summit

A woman walks by a gate with a painting depicting Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, June 29, 2011. Chavez underwent surgery in Cuba two weeks ago and has been unusually quiet since then. Allies of Chavez have insisted the leader is firmly in control of the country and improving from his operation for a pelvic abscess.(AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) (AP)

The health of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, shrouded in mystery for the last two weeks, has led to the postponement of a summit of Latin American leaders next week, that country's government announced Wednesday.

"The Venezuelan government, after discussions with the governments of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, has taken the decision to postpone the Third Summit of Latin America and the Caribbean on Integration and Development (CALC) that was scheduled to take place on July 5-6, 2011 on Margarita Island, Venezuela," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Chávez has been recovering from surgery in Cuba. On Tuesday, following reports that he was in critical condition, leftist leader appeared on state television chatting with Fidel Castro.

Chávez had been expected to host the summit on the 200th anniversary of Venezuela's independence from Spain. He promoted it as an event to lay the groundwork for a new regional bloc, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, which excludes the United States and Canada.

The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry said it will work with other countries to schedule a new date for the summit in Venezuela later in the year. It remained unclear how soon Chávez might be able to return home.

Footage of Tuesday's encounter in Cuba showed Chávez and Castro in a garden chatting amicably about old times and discussing a Cuban newspaper article about school uniforms. It then cut to them seated indoors having an animated conversation.

"Today's newspaper, today's front page," Chávez said, reading the headlines in the Venezuelan state newspaper El Correo del Orinoco.

They talked about socialism and laughed as Chávez recalled a visit by Castro to Venezuela years ago when they ventured down a jungle path through vines.

Chávez has been largely out of sight since the government announced June 10 that he had undergone pelvic surgery. He spoke once in a telephone call to state television two days after the operation, and appeared in photographs alongside both Fidel and Raul Castro that were published June 18.

A series of photos and short video clips were shown on Cuban and Venezuelan television Tuesday night, but the footage shown Wednesday was longer and included audio of their conversation.

Vice President Elias Jaua told Venezuelan state television that the latest images show that the 56-year-old Chávez is clearly getting better.

"The president is in the process of recuperating, and he has a right to recuperate," Jaua said. "He has the right to take the time necessary to recuperate."

He said Chávez was on top of his duties and worked on military issues and other matters Wednesday. He did not provide other details about Chávez's health, nor say when he was expected to return home.

Venezuelan and Cuban state television both aired the footage, which lasted about 20 minutes. It began with Chávez arriving and greeting Castro with a salute and the slogan "Fatherland or death, we will be victorious!"

The two stood outdoors with palm trees in the background, surrounded by attendants. Castro wore a blue track suit jacket and a red cap of Cuba's national baseball team, and Chávez had on a warm-up jacket in the colors of the Venezuelan flag.

They both read aloud from the front pages of official newspapers Granma and Juventud Rebelde, and discussed current events and moments in Latin American history such as the 1973 coup in Chile.

After a cut, the two were seen walking and then indoors chatting with Chávez's daughters and a granddaughter, who also read from Granma.

Chávez has said the surgery removed a pelvic abscess, yet a lack of details about his condition has fed speculation in Venezuela that the president might be seriously ill.

Some of Chávez's political opponents were not convinced Chávez looked healthy in the latest videos, and said he appeared thinner than usual.

Jaua has led government events in Chávez's absence and the leftist president's elder brother, Adan, rallied supporters at a Sunday prayer meeting for Chávez's health.

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica, a Chávez ally, said before the announcement of the summit cancellation that he expected the Venezuelan leader to be home in time for the country's independence anniversary July 5.

Speaking on a television program in Uruguay on Tuesday night, Mujica joked that "Fidel Castro kidnapped Chávez to ensure his recovery."

"Chávez is very temperamental," Mujica said. "They operated on him and he needs about 20-something days of recovery. Fidel practically kidnapped him, didn't let him go, because he didn't trust that in Venezuela (Chávez) would pay attention to the treatments."

Mujica didn't say whether he had spoken with Venezuelan or Cuban officials about Chávez's condition.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.