The 57-year-old Chavez, who has lost his hair due to the treatment, expressed confidence he will return to Venezuela in a few days "in better condition that I am now."

"We will come out of this stronger. I am sure of it. My perspective is lengthening, and it's not 2012, but 2031," he said before his departure from Caracas, referring to his plans to run for a third six-year term in presidential elections next year.

While the firebrand leftist was in Havana, Venezuelan media aired an interview with an introspective Chavez who recalled the moment when Cuban leader Fidel Castro first told him he had cancer.

"I went to the bathroom to look at my eyes, and I cried, I cried, I cried. I cried for my children," Chavez told private channel Televen before his departure.

But it was a "smiling and very talkative" Venezuelan leader who stepped off the plane in Havana late Saturday, according to an official statement released by Cuban state media.

The former paratrooper was wearing a simple dark military uniform and red beret when he and his daughter Maria Gabriela greeted Cuban President Raul Castro at the airport.

Chavez said last month he had "successfully" finished a first round of chemotherapy, and with no malignant cells found in his body he was "beginning a new life," although he was cautious about the future.

"There will be several rounds in order to win this battle and eliminate all risk of malignant cells," he said.

The Venezuelan government has not disclosed the extent of Chavez's cancer or provided any other details.

Cuba, the only one-party communist regime in the Americas, is Chavez's closest regional ally.

The Venezuelan leader underwent an operation in Cuba in June for a cancerous tumor in his pelvic area, and he has continued his presidential duties despite his illness, albeit with a restricted schedule.

He has cut back his marathon speeches during which he often drives home his self-styled 21st century socialism.

He has turned more introspective since going public with his cancer, and in his interview broadcast Sunday said the inefficiency that marred his government had led to "a set of political, economic and social blunders."

But "inventing a new model inevitably leads to mistakes," and boosting efficiency and reducing bureaucracy is a never-ending challenge, Chavez said.

The leader insisted however that putting Venezuela on the path to socialism was one of his greatest accomplishments, because "it would be a mistake to build a new Venezuela within the framework of capitalism."

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2010