NEW DELHI, Nov 23: India’s imports of Russian crude oil – the feedstock for fuels like petrol and diesel – are expected to drop sharply in the near term but not halt entirely as new US sanctions on Moscow’s top oil exporters take full effect, analysts said. US sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, and their majority-owned subsidiaries, took effect on November 21, effectively turning crude linked to these firms into a “sanctioned molecule”. India’s crude oil imports from Russia, averaging 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) this year, remained firm ahead of the cutoff, with November arrivals projected at 1.8-1.9 million bpd, as refiners maximise discounted purchases. But flows are expected to drop noticeably in December and January, with analysts estimating near-term declines to around 4,00

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