Nokia CEO Suri says has strong momentum in Europe sales

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finnish telecoms gear maker Nokia (NOK1V.HE) has good prospects for sales in Europe and North America in the coming quarters, its chief executive said on Thursday after the company posted better-than-expected quarterly results.

Rajeev Suri, who was promoted in April to become the group's CEO, also told Reuters that Nokia was not too concerned that its business would be hit by potential sanctions against Russia due to the Ukraine crisis.

"In Europe, we have significant deal momentum, that we think will play into new network deployment projects we expect to have in the second half (of the year)," he said in a telephone interview.

"In North America, we are between projects at the moment in roll-out and expect it to accelerate in the coming quarters."

Asked about political tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East, Suri said that a globally operating company always has risks, but added that the company saw some impact from the crises in some Middle Eastern markets in the second quarter.

Turning to sanctions, he said that the company is watching what is happening and assured that it would comply with all regulations, and added that one would have to balance the risks by seizing opportunities in other areas.

The tensions had not changed the company's assessment of flat to modest growth in networks market, Suri added.

(Reporting by Sakari Suoninen; Editing by Jussi Rosendahl)