(Associated Press) - The Senate on Thursday endorsed President Bush's diplomatic approach to Iran's nuclear program after rejecting a proposal that would have increased sanctions against the Tehran government and those helping it.
In Shanghai today, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that he saw a six-nation incentive package aimed at getting his country to halt uranium enrichment as progress in resolving the dispute over the nuclear program, reports Trend.
"Generally speaking, we're regarding this offer as a step forward, and I have instructed my colleagues to carefully consider it," Ahmadinejad said after meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of a regional summit in Shanghai.
The Senate voted 99 to 0 to support the decision, announced May 31 by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, that the United States would join other Western nations in engaging Iran in negotiations and offering a package of incentives if Tehran suspended its uranium enrichment activities.
That vote came minutes after a 54-45 vote to defeat a proposal by Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) that would have imposed mandatory sanctions on entities that help Iran acquire or develop weapons of mass destruction.