Chavez: It does't matter who wins US election

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on Monday that he did not expect the outcome of the US presidential election to change the tense relationship between Washington and his country.

During a televised meeting with several of his ministers, Chavez said he had no high hopes for any difference in bilateral relations between the US and his country, or indeed with Latin America or the world.

"I tell you, we do not have many hopes, from our point of view, that the winning of one or the other will mean major changes in terms of the United States' relationship with the world, with Latin America or Venezuela," Chavez said.

On Friday, with the US presidential race in its final stages, Republican candidate Mitt Romney launched a Spanish-language advertisement in the key swing state of Florida, which implied that President Barack Obama is supported by Chavez and Cuba's Castro brothers.

The Obama administration said the commercial rewarded Chavez and the Castros with undeserved attention, and notes that relations with both countries have remained chilly under the current US president.

Chavez's comments on Monday do little to support Romney's claims and suggest a continuation of Venezuela's fractious relationship with the US, whoever wins on Tuesday.