Iran would need three days to lift its oil production back to the level it was at before U.S. sanctions were imposed, the semi-official Mehr news agency quoted Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh as saying on Tuesday.

"Three days are needed to return production to the levels before the reduction," Zanganeh said, according to the report.

U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from world powers' landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran last year and reimposed sanctions in an effort to curb the Islamic Republic's ballistic missile programme and support for regional proxies.

The confrontation has brought the United States and Iran close to open conflict.