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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama renewed some long-standing U.S. financial sanctions against Iran on Thursday, the White House said.

Obama notified Congress that, as expected, he was extending a set of existing U.S. measures against Tehran for another year, saying "our relations with Iran have not yet returned to normal."

Since taking office in January, Obama has sought to reach out diplomatically to Iran, but the West remains locked in a bitter dispute with Tehran over its nuclear program.

The sanctions that Obama renewed on Thursday, which involve certain frozen Iranian assets, stem from a "national emergency" the U.S. government declared in November 1979 near the start of the Iran hostage crisis.

Such sanctions have to be extended annually by the U.S. president to remain in effect.

The timing of Obama's move did not appear intended to send a ... >>>