New Delhi, May 19 -- India will continue purchasing crude oil from Russia regardless of the expiry of a US waiver that permitted such purchases until May 16, a senior government official said on Monday, asserting that the lapse would have no impact on the country's fuel supplies.

Waiver or no waiver, it shall not affect our supplies and all efforts have been taken to that effect, said Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), at an inter-ministerial briefing.

She added that Indian oil marketing companies had been buying Russian crude before, during, and after the waiver period, and that enough crude had been tied up to ensure availability.

The US waiver had allowed countries to purchase Russian crud...