Chavez Back to Cuba for Round Three

by Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, April 7 — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez heads to Cuba tonight to undergo his third round of radiotherapy treatment in his battle to defeat the cancer that took him to the operating room to remove tumors in June 2011 and February 2012.

This will be Chavez fifth trip to Cuba in less than two months.

“Tomorrow (Saturday) I will leave at night for Havana to continue the battle for health and life,” Chavez told Telesur TV.

The president had returned to Venezuela on Wednesday after round two of the treatment.

While he has assured the media that his treatment is going well and that he has no new signs of cancer in his system, he prayed publically to Jesus Christ on Thursday in a pre-Easter mass to let him “continue living” on because he has “a lot to do for people of his country.”

During the announcement of his travel plans, Chavez also said he had spoken by phone with embattled Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to offer his support in his struggle to end the violence in that Middle Eastern country.

“He [Assad] told me that more than 2,000 soldiers had been killed during the terrorist plan to overthrow his government.  However, he assured that his political plans continue forward and that the security situation is getting better. He hopes to have things under control in the near future, returning peace to his Arab country,” said Chavez.

Venezuela is Cuba’s leading trade partner and Chavez its chief political ally.