Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh. Photo: Wikipedia.

US companies are welcome to invest in Iran’s oil and gas industry, the Iranian oil minister said Sunday.

State-run Press TV quoted Bijan Namdar Zangeneh as saying that “in general, we have no problem with the presence of American companies in Iran.”

He said it is the US government that is “creating restrictions for these companies,” without elaborating. Zangeneh also confirmed that Iran’s state-run oil company has held talks with General Electric.

“Of course, my deputy conducted these negotiations and when I inquired about them, it was said that the talks were positive,” he said.

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