Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on Sunday that his country recognizes the victory of Alan Garcia in the Peruvian presidential election but demands that Garcia apologize for insulting the Venezuelan people.

Relations with Peru "are in the deepest freezer we could put them," said Chavez in his live TV and radio show Alo Presidente, noting "the only way Venezuela could restore relations with the new government of Peru is that the president-elect of Peru offer the necessary explanation and apologies to the Venezuelan people."

Speaking from the western Venezuelan state of Portuguesa, Chavez said his country recognized but did not applaud Garcia's victory.

Chavez again rebutted Garcia's accusation of interference in Peru's internal affairs, saying that as the Venezuelan president, he just defended his country and "that has nothing to do with interfering in Peru's electoral process."

Chavez and Peru's then presidential candidate Garcia were involved in a war of words in April.

Garcia said Chavez were "shameless" and accused Chavez of interfering in Peru's internal affairs as the latter expressed his public support for Garcia's rival, nationalist candidate Ollanta Humala.

Chavez responded by calling Garcia a "thief" and threatened to cut diplomatic relations with Peru if Garcia won.

The conflict escalated to a peak in May when the two countries recalled their respective ambassadors.

Source: Xinhua