MOSCOW, November 13 (RIA Novosti) - President Obama has renewed U.S. economic sanctions against Iran for another year, the White House has said.

"Our relations with Iran have not yet returned to normal," Obama said in a letter to Congress on Thursday.

The sanctions are primarily intended to put pressure on Iran to halt its nuclear program.

Some of the sanctions have been in place since 1979, when Iranian militants occupied the U.S. embassy in Tehran, holding 52 Americans hostage for 444 days.

Obama is reportedly considering a range of broader sanctions targeting third parties that cooperate with Iran.