Havana ? Cuban television is showing images of Fidel Castro chatting in a garden with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the first images of the ailing revolutionary broadcast in six months.

The 81-year-old Castro looks thinner, and his hair and beard are much whiter in the video images, which did not include any audio. But he nevertheless looks vigorous and animated as he talks with his younger brother, President Raul Castro, and Chavez.

Fidel Castro was dressed in a white running jacket with red and blue trim in the images broadcast Tuesday.