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CARACAS, Venezuela: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urged the international community to help Zimbabwe fight a cholera outbreak, expressing full support for the African nation's embattled leader.

Chavez warned other countries not to use the health crisis to "politically destabilize" Zimbabwe's government. Venezuela's foreign ministry released the comments Friday in a statement.

President Robert Mugabe last week insisted Zimbabwe's health crisis had ended, saying there was "no cholera" in the country. But the United Nations said the death toll has continue to climb and now tops 1,100.

Venezuela has supported Mugabe, who began his sixth presidential term in June after a violent election season, as the U.S. and some European governments have called for an end his rule. The top U.S. envoy for Africa, Jendayi Frazer, on Thursday said Washington believes Mugabe has "ruined the country" and "needs to step down."