CARACAS: A meeting between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad set for this weekend in Caracas has been postponed indefinitely, a senior official said Friday.
"We will be waiting for President Chavez to fully recover" from a fourth round of chemotherapy before scheduling a new meeting date, said Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro.
He would only indicate that the talks with Ahmadinejad, which had been set to take place Saturday, could take place "in the coming months."
The two leaders have developed close ties in recent years, united by their opposition to the United States, which both have accused of meddling in their respective regions.
The United States this year slapped sanctions on Venezuela's state oil giant PDVSA for its commercial ties to Iran, which Washington deems in violation of international sanctions over Tehran's nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad last visited Caracas in November 2009 and Chavez traveled to Tehran in October 2010.
Chavez returned to Venezuela late Thursday from Cuba, where he completed what he says is his final round of chemotherapy following the removal of a cancerous tumor in June, and expressed confidence in his full recovery.
Iranian and Venezuelan officials signed nearly a dozen cooperation agreements in housing, agriculture, food manufacturing and oil shipments during two days of talks that wrapped up Friday in Caracas.
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