"We are now in for a 120-day period of engagement. We have been assured that the issue of Kosovo's status will be settled, and the result of that process is Kosovo's independence," Ceku said after the meeting.
Kosovo's independence is a condition of stability in the region and Southeast Europe, he added.
"We have shown good will to talk also with Belgrade in order to build normal relations, so that all sides could contribute to the peace, stability and security of the region," Ceku said.
Asked if after the Washington talks he still stuck with his previous announcement that Kosovo's independence should be declared on November 28, Ceku said he did, adding that the date itself was not so important, "the most important thing is that after the 120 days of talks Kosovo will be independent, and whether that will happen on 28 or 26 November, is yet to be seen".
Asked about Germany's proposal to set up a troika to mediate in the new round of negotiations between Pristina and Belgrade, Ceku said: "We are not dodging talks and we want the best possible solution, we want as many countries as possible, including Moscow, to recognise Kosovo, because that is the only realistic and possible solution."
Asked about the possibility of the issue of Kosovo's partition being raised again considering the new situation, Ceku said the Kosovo delegation had been given "firm guarantees that principles of the Contact Group will be abided by and that Kosovo's division is out of the question".
A spokesman for the State Department said earlier that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had urged Kosovo's delegation to be patient after talks on Kosovo's independence were discontinued in the UN Security Council.
Nobody should interrupt the ongoing diplomatic process. We are continuing discussions with Europe and are in touch with Russia on the matter, spokesman Sean McCormack said.
He underlined that the international community would continue to look for the best possible solution for Kosovo, one that would be in line with peace mediator Martti Ahtisaari's plan on supervised independence for the break-away Serbian province.
The Kosovo delegation visiting Washington consists of President Fatmir Sejdiu, Parliament Speaker Kol Berisha, and opposition leaders Veton Surroi and Hashim Thaci. They also met with the State Under-Secretary for Political Affairs, Nicholas Burns, and other State Department officials.
The delegation was also due to meet the presidential advisor on national security, Steven Hadley.
Sources in the Kosovo delegation say that the new round of talks between Pristina and Belgrade could start in about ten days, and that they would be held at one of the locations in Vienna at which negotiations were held in the past 13 months, with the assistance of mediators. An international conference is expected to be held at the end of negotiations.
If no agreement is reached at the talks, Kosovo will most probably follow the example of other former Yugoslav republics and declare independence, hoping for international recognition, the sources said.