Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff called Wednesday for Latin America to launch a region-wide fight against the Zika virus, blamed for causing a surge in brain-damaged babies.

Rousseff said she had asked a summit of the 33-member Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) to launch "cooperative action in the fight against the Zika virus," and announced a meeting of regional health ministers Tuesday in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo to address the outbreak sweeping the region.