BY FRANK DAVIES

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Colin Powell on Monday defended U.S. policy in Haiti as having averted a full-scale civil war and pledged to help ''fragile democracies'' throughout the hemisphere.

In a speech to the Council of the Americas, Powell also said he expects Venezuela to conduct a ''credible recall and referendum process in the very near future'' on the fate of President Hugo Chávez.

His assistant secretary, Roger Noriega, had stronger words, saying Venezuela's neighbors ''are going to have to make very tough judgments as they hold the Venezuelan government accountable'' for allegations of meddling in their domestic affairs.

Powell, in a wide-ranging speech on hemispheric issues, also asked the council, which includes many large U.S. companies, to help make the case to Congress and the U.S. public for more free-trade deals in the region.

On Haiti, Powell said he was ''intimately involved'' in discussions that led to the departure of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide on Feb. 29, amid a violent revolt.

''I'll never forget that evening,'' Powell said. ``We were on the verge of a civil war, inside of Port-au-Prince and other parts of Haiti, that would have resulted in the loss of many, many lives.''

Powell also said that more effective aid and investment could help countries trying to improve their standard of living. Recent reports and polls have shown that many in Latin America are frustrated with their lack of economic progress.

'We seek to help countries through their times of transition so their peoples' dreams do not turn to despair and they do not begin to question the legitimacy of democracy itself,'' he said.

During its two-day conference, the council also gave a leadership award to Sen. Bob Graham to honor the Florida Democrat's long-time involvement in Latin American issues.