Kosovo tells U.S. it will not declare independence

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Kosovo told the United States on Monday that it did not have plans to unilaterally declare independence from Serbia, said senior officials from the United States and Kosovo.

Kosovo's leaders gave the assurance during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington, said Skender Hyseni, a spokesman for the Kosovo delegation. A senior U.S. official who attended the meeting confirmed this.

"Today the (Kosovo) unity team once again reassured the United States that we remain close partners of both the United States and the European Union in bringing the independence process to a close," Hyseni told Reuters after the meeting.