Hillary bumps into Hugo Chavez in Brazil

BRASILIA, Brazil, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says his informal encounter with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Brazil was a pleasant one.

Chavez and Clinton shook hands and exchanged pleasantries while both were in Brasilia for the inauguration of Brazil's new president.

""We greeted each other," Chavez told reporters at Brasilia's airport. "She had a very spontaneous smile and I greeted her with the same effusiveness."

The BBC said Sunday the exchange was in sharp contrast to recent chilly relations between the United States and Venezuela. The two nations have been locked in a diplomatic duel over their mutual refusal to accept new ambassadors.