Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sent condolences expressing his “sincere sorrow” for the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

Venezuela is confident that the North Koreans will move toward a prosperous and peaceful future, the ministry said in the e-mailed statement.

The government expressed its “solidarity” with North Korea and said that Venezuela is willing to “continue fighting along with sovereign nations for the auto-determination of countries and world peace.”

North Korea has defied three U.S. administrations in its pursuit of nuclear weapons, while economic mismanagement has resulted in mass starvation.

--Editors: Philip Sanders

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Cancel in Caracas at dcancel@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net