Clinton is due to meet counterparts at the 54-member Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) summit in Kazakhstan, before visiting Uzbekistan and Bahrain for talks with leaders of those countries.

"I want personally to impress upon them the importance that I place on the kind of open, productive discussions that we have had to date, and our intention to continue working closely with them," the chief US diplomat said.

"Obviously this is a matter of great concern because we don't want anyone in any of the countries that could be affected by these alleged leaks to have any doubts about our intentions, and about our commitments," she told reporters.

"Policy is made in Washington," she said before heading for her plane.

US President Barack Obama and "I have been very clear about our goals and objectives in dealing with the full range of global challenges we face. And we will continue to do so," Clinton said.

"And we will continue to work for every opportunity to work with our friends and partners and allies around the world and to deal in a very clear-eyed way with those with whom Uwe have differences," she said.

Aware that the Internet whistleblower WikiLeaks would release thousands of documents, Clinton and other US officials had raced to contain the fallout by warning more than a dozen governments of the impending leaks.

The secretary already had her first face-to-face damage control effort when she met earlier Monday with Turkey's foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu over the dump of US documents.

State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said she had "a very productive session" with Davutoglu and that the minister "appreciated the direct and candid comments the secretary provided."

In a question-and-answer session with reporters, Clinton acknowledged how the mass leak put a chill on candid conversations on issues of common concerns that US diplomats have with their foreign interlocutors.

Among the topics set to be discussed by the OSCE in the Kazakh capital Astana are the Afghanistan conflict; the upsurge of unrest in Kyrgyzstan this year; and the search for a breakthough over the Azerbaijan-Armenia dispute over Nagorny-Karabakh.

James Collins, a former US admbassador to Moscow, told AFP the leaks will complicate Washington's ability to conduct multilateral negotiations, including those on Afghanistan, because US partners will fear details will become public.

A confidential cable from the US embassy in Astana on April 17, 2008 described the lifestyles of the Kazakh leadership and elite, saying they enjoyed traditional hobbies like horseback riding and skiing.

But it also said Defense Minister Daniyal Akhmetov appeared to be someone who liked to drink heavily while Prime Minister Karim Masimov was reported to have enjoyed dancing at one of Astana's trendiest nightclubs.

Besides OSCE delegates, Clinton will meet with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev to "discuss various aspects of the US-Kazakhstan strategic partnership," the State Department said.

In Kyrgyzstan, it said, Clinton will meet with President Roza Otunbayeva and other government officials to review developments following the country's historic election.

Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet republic long considered the region's most politically volatile, has been wracked by unrest since former president Kurmanbek Bakiyev was ousted in a bloody coup in April.

In Bahrain, the State Department said, she will deliver the keynote speech on the role of the United States in regional security at an annual forum.

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