After an unprecedented Nowruz message to Iranians, the Obama administration reportedly takes a step to invite envoys from the Iranian government to celebrate the 4th of July.

The US State Department has sent a cable to its various embassies and consulates all over the world notifying them that "they may invite representatives from the government of Iran" to the annual reception of America's Independence Day celebrations, according to a report by the New York Times.

A senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made public the authorization for the issuance of invitations to the Iranian side.

The move comes as another step in a series of efforts in line with President Barack Obama's promise to extend a hand of peace to Iran if it "unclenched its fist".

"It is another way of saying we are not putting barriers in the way of communicating," said one administration official. "It is another way of signaling that there is an opportunity that should not be wasted."

The Obama White House has been looking at a range of methods to create a change in tone from the hostile one adopted by the Bush administration with regards to Iran.

Earlier in March, the White House said President Obama wanted to "send a special message to the people and government of Iran on Nowruz, acknowledging the strain in our relations over the last few decades."

Following the American move -- described as an overture --, an aide to President Ahmadinejad welcomed "the wish of the president of the United States to put away the past differences".

The Islamic Republic was invited to an international conference on Afghanistan in March. Washington has also asked for Iranian cooperation on neighboring Iraq as US forces prepare to leave the war-battered country.

There has also been talk of President Obama writing a letter to top officials in Iran. After Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sent a congratulatory letter to the US president for his election, reports claimed that the US State Department started working on drafts of a response letter.

Reopening a US interests section in Tehran is believed to be another possibility that could lead to an end in the thirty years of animosity between the two countries.

CS/AA