Chavez says Castro is walking and 'almost jogging'

Caracas, Venezuela: Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro is recovering and has been up and walking - in fact "almost jogging" - in recent days, according to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

He said on Wednesday he was pleased to hear from Cuban Vice-President Carlos Lage that the 80-year-old Castro was making a recovery. Lage, after meeting with Chavez, said: "We will have Fidel and we will have Raul for a lot more time." Their hopeful remarks came less than a week after Chavez said Castro was "battling for his life." "Lage told me that Fidel walked I don't know how many minutes yesterday," Chavez said on Wednesday, noting he suspected Castro was watching his speech on television.

"He's walking more than me, almost jogging. Maybe he's walking while watching us." Chavez has regularly reported in generalities on Castro's health since July 31, when the Cuban leader announced he was temporarily stepping aside while he recovered from an intestinal operation and was provisionally ceding power to his brother Raul.

Recuperation

Chavez held up a letter and said, "I'm going to show you something, for those who say that Fidel is dying, that he can't talk, that he can't move." The TV camera zoomed in on the letter and Castro's signature in black ink. "Look closely at the strokes of the signature. We are extremely happy, Fidel, about the news of your recuperation." The Cuban government treats Castro's precise medical condition as a state secret.

Lage said that even though Fidel Castro is no longer in charge of presidential duties, Cuba's people "continue to be united, continue to be confident".