Petrocaribe, Alba support Venezuelan president's continuity in office

Gathered at the Foreign Ministry, downtown Caracas, leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean on Thursday during a meeting of oil alliance Petrocaribe and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) endorsed a decision of the Supreme Court of Justice to put off the swearing-in ceremony of Hugo Chávez, who was reelected as president of Venezuela on October 7. Chávez, whose inauguration was scheduled for January 10, is currently in Cuba recovering from a cancer surgery.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro said, "We are very pleased and grateful. On behalf of President Chávez's government, we would like to express our gratitude. This is a historical and difficult moment when true brothers and friends are put to the test," said Maduro, who is also the executive vice-president of Venezuela.

"We call for respect for the court decision," reads a document issued by Petrocaribe and ALBA, as quoted by Maduro. Latin American and Caribbean leaders traveled to Venezuela to attend a rally scheduled for January 10 in support of Hugo Chávez's Government.

Translated by Jhean Cabrera