GENEVA - The mixed messages that Iran received from the U.S. about sanctions undermine the possibility of bilateral talks, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday, in a speech broadcast live on state TV.

It was not acceptable for U.S. President Donald Trump to say in public that he would intensify sanctions while European powers were telling the Islamic Republic in private that he was willing to negotiate, Rouhani said.

European powers were continuing efforts to arrange talks, Rouhani said.

(Reporting By Babak Dehghanpisheh; editing by John Stonestreet) ((babak.dehghanpisheh@thomsonreuters.com;))