MANILA, Philippines ? (UPDATE 2) President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her top security officials assured the head of the United States? top spy on Sunday that the recent spate of bombings in Mindanao was ?nothing to be worried about.?

Leon Panetta, the visiting chief of the Central Intelligence Agency, met with Arroyo and key Cabinet officials in closed-door meeting in Malacañang on Sunday afternoon.

?He was given an overview and we assured him that this is nothing,? National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer (parent company of INQUIRER.net) by phone after attending the meeting.

?They?re routine in Mindanao,? he said, referring to the bomb attacks that rocked Cotobato City, Jolo town, and Iligan City last week.

Gonzales said Panetta could get details of the bombings in ?later meetings? or through people from the US Embassy in Manila.

The bombings?along with the release of Italian hostage Eugenio Vagni from the Abu Sayyaf?were among the predominantly security matters tackled in the 30-minute meeting with Panetta, according to Gonzales.

Also present were US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., and Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo.

Gonzales disputed suggestions that Vagni?s release from the bandit group Abu Sayyaf was ?timed? with the arrival of Panetta.

?It?s not like that,? he said.

Vagni was freed by a group of Abu Sayyaf bandits early Sunday morning after being held captive for six months.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde described the meeting as ?mainly a social call (that) also discussed issues of common concern on international terrorism.?

?They?re happy with the working relations between our people and theirs in the combat against terrorism in Mindanao,? Gonzales said.

He said Panetta gave Philippine officials a security ?situationer? around the world. He said Arroyo commented on issues closest to the Philippines, particularly the conflicts in Iran and Iraq.

?We reacted mostly on the Middle East because there are many Filipino workers there,? he said.

Gonzales said the meeting was generally cordial with Panetta, a former California congressman, noting to the group that many Filipinos used to be among his constituents.

Remonde sought to downplay Panetta?s arrival, saying it was part of a ?routine visit in the Asia-Pacific region.? The CIA chief arrived at 2:15 a.m. on Sunday and was set to leave at 10 p.m. on the same day.

Still, Malacañang took pains to keep Panetta out of media?s reach.

The meeting at Malacañang?s Music Room was opened briefly for a photo opportunity before 1 p.m. Later, reporters were barred from conducting ambush interviews with local officials attending the meeting.

Meanwhile, the foreign department in a statement said Arroyo has accepted an invitation to visit the White House on July 30, becoming the first Southeast Asian leader to have an audience with President Barack Obama.

Arroyo's visit "is an affirmation of the strong partnership between the two countries that share historical and cultural ties and common democratic values," the department said in a statement.

Apart from joint counter-terrorism efforts, Arroyo is expected to discuss with Obama her government's poverty alleviation and economic programmes, it said.

A senior department official, who asked not to be named, said the two leaders would discuss bilateral defense, security, economic and political issues.

Diplomatic ties were strained after a US Marine who had participated in the annual Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) war games was convicted of raping a Filipino woman in 2006.

An appeals court overturned the decision early this year after the victim recanted her statement.

American troops have been rotating in the southern Philippines since 2003 for joint anti-terror training with their Filipino counterparts.

With reports from Jerome Aning, Philippine Daily Inquirer; INQUIRER.net; Agence France-Presse