TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran has been told that the United States will issue export licences within weeks to facilitate the purchase of Boeing (>> Boeing Co) and Airbus (>> Airbus Group) jets and European ATR turboprop planes, a senior Iranian official said on Sunday.

Approval had been expected by the end of August, but that has been pushed back to the end of September, Deputy Roads and Urban Development Minister Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan said.

"Today we are expecting that (approval) by the end of September for Boeing, Airbus and ATR," he told the CAPA Iran Aviation Finance Summit in Tehran.

The U.S. Treasury can veto sales of modern aircraft to Iran, including non-U.S. ones, due to the high proportion of U.S. parts.

Failure to issue the required U.S. approval would breach an agreement between Tehran and world powers to ease sanctions in return for curbs on Iran's nuclear activities, Kashan said.

An Iranair official said the airline is meanwhile looking to acquire second-hand aircraft or hire crewed aircraft to help meet its most urgent needs.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by David French)

Stocks treated in this article : Airbus Group, Boeing Co