ABU DHABI: The US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton has acknowledged it will take years to undo the damage caused by the WikiLeaks revelations, likening her recent travels to an extended ''apology tour'' to reassure allies who suffered embarrassment or worse because of the disclosures.

''I think I will be answering concerns about WikiLeaks for the rest of my life, not just the rest of my tenure as Secretary of State,'' Mrs Clinton said as she embarked on a five-day visit of Arab countries, many of which were stung by revelations about private talks between American diplomats and regional leaders.

Hillary Clinton ... on her "apology tour". Credit:AFP

Mrs Clinton, who is on her second Middle East trip in less than a month, said she had sought to ''affirmatively raise'' the WikiLeaks issue in meetings with Arab officials to tackle the problems head-on.

Some of Iran's Arab neighbours were particularly aggrieved by leaked State Department cables that showed them privately urging the Obama administration to take a harder line against Iran's nuclear ambitions.