"With regards to Zimbabwe, we urge all parties to respect the will of the people, regardless of the outcome, and to proceed within the requirements of the law," the leader of the African National Congress said in a speech to the Durban Chamber of Commerce, according to South Africa's SAPA news agency.

"Where there are disputes these should be pursued through the appropriate legal channels," he was quoted as saying.

Zuma's remarks came several days after he met Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, the main opposition party in Zimbabwe. Zuma has criticised the delayed release of results from the Zimbabwe elections.

Tsvangirai says he won the presidential vote and should be declared president immediately, ending the 28-year rule of President Robert Mugabe, whose critics accuse him of reducing a once prosperous nation to misery.

Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF is pressing for a delay in issuing the presidential results pending a recount and is also alleging abuses by electoral officials in an attempt to overturn its first defeat in a parliamentary poll.