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Ex-President Donald Trump remarked this past Sunday that he is not actively contemplating providing Ukrainian forces with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a reporter aboard his plane, he answered, “No, not at the moment.” Earlier reports had indicated the Pentagon told the White House that U.S. stockpiles of Tomahawks were ample to allow such a transfer.

Ukraine's Defense Actions Persist Without Missile Lack

While Ukrainian forces has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching attacks against Russia, it has still managed to wage a successful operation using its own drones and rockets against Moscow's armed and key objectives, including oil depots and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Kyiv's airstrike hit the port facility on the Black Sea, causing a blaze and harming two vessels, according to Russian officials. Adjacent Russian airports in the region also had to be closed.

Turkish Refineries Shift to Alternative Oil Sources

Ankara's biggest oil refineries are boosting procurement of alternative crude in response to the latest international restrictions on Russia, according to market insiders. The country is a major buyer of oil from Russia, together with Beijing and New Delhi, but refiners are mirroring India's example in reducing supplies.

STAR Refinery Diversifies Oil Procurement

One of the largest Turkish refineries, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azeri company SOCAR, has lately purchased four cargoes of crude from Iraqi, Kazakhstan, and additional non-Russian suppliers for year-end arrival, as per sources. These purchases amount to approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian crude, varying by cargo size. In contrast, oil from Russia accounted for virtually all of the plant's crude intake in recent months, totaling approximately 210,000 barrels per day, based on trade data. SOCAR refused to comment.

Another Major Refiner Likewise Increasing Alternative Purchases

The other leading Turkey's oil processor – Tupras – was additionally increasing acquisitions of non-Russian grades of crude, as stated by multiple insiders. Tupras was furthermore likely to in the near future completely eliminate imports from Russia at a key facility of its primary main domestic plants to maintain fuel exports to the EU without violating the EU’s upcoming sanctions. Tupras did not respond to a request for comment.

Ukraine Deploys Elite Units to Pokrovsk

Ukraine has sent special forces to the heavily contested east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to push back an fierce Russian offensive comprising thousands of soldiers, as stated by Ukraine's senior commander. Pokrovsk, dubbed “the gateway to Donetsk,” is located on a key supply line for the Kyiv's army and has been in Moscow’s sights for over a twelve months as Russia pushes to control the whole eastern Donetsk area.

Latest Updates in Pokrovsk

At least two hundred Russian soldiers had penetrated Pokrovsk’s defences, Kyiv said last week, while analysts concluded that additional forces were advancing on its perimeter in a encircling maneuver. In his nightly address on Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the fighting in Pokrovsk and “results in the elimination of the invading forces.”

Ukrainian President Announces Enhanced Air Defence Network

The president, who has been pushing his allies for additional air defences to hold off Moscow's strikes, stated on this past Sunday that the country had strengthened its air-defence network with Berlin's support. “We've strengthened the U.S.-made Patriot element of our national air defence,” he said, referring to the sophisticated U.S.-made defense systems. Not providing further information, the Ukraine's leader singled out Germany and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Moscow's Attacks Claim Innocents, Disrupt Electricity

Russian unmanned aircraft and rockets targeting Ukraine killed no fewer than six individuals, including 2 children, and disrupted electricity to tens of thousands of households, officials reported on this past Sunday. Moscow's military struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, said the representatives of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. The children were male minors of ages eleven and 14, said the nation's ombudsman. The strikes disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk region as well as almost 58 thousand homes in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders announced. Ukraine’s Vostok military unit said a number of its personnel were killed in one of the Russian attacks on the region.