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FormerPresident Donald Trump remarked this past Sunday that he was not seriously contemplating supplying Ukrainian forces with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a reporter aboard his plane, he answered, “No, not currently.” Recent reports had claimed the U.S. Department of Defense told the administration that U.S. inventories of Tomahawks were adequate to enable this delivery.

Ukraine's Military Efforts Continue Despite Weapon Lack

Although Ukraine has been seeking Tomahawk missiles to execute far-reaching attacks against Russia, it has nonetheless succeeded to conduct a effective operation using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and rockets against Russian armed and strategic objectives, such as fuel storage facilities and refineries. On Sunday, a Kyiv's drone attack hit the port facility on the coast, igniting a blaze and harming two vessels, as stated by Russian officials. Nearby airfields in the region also had to be shut down.

Turkish Refineries Turn to Alternative Crude Sources

Turkey's largest oil refineries are boosting procurement of non-Russian crude in response to the latest international restrictions on Moscow, as reported by market insiders. Turkey is a major buyer of Russian crude, together with China and New Delhi, but refiners are following New Delhi's lead in reducing imports.

STAR Refinery Diversifies Oil Procurement

One of the largest Turkey's refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), operated by Azerbaijani firm SOCAR, has lately acquired multiple shipments of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other alternative suppliers for year-end arrival, as per sources. These purchases amount to approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of alternative supply, depending on cargo size. In contrast, oil from Russia made up virtually the entirety of the plant's supply in October and September, amounting to approximately 210 thousand barrels per day, according to market data. SOCAR declined to comment.

Another Major Refiner Also Boosting Non-Russian Buys

The other leading Turkish refiner – Tupras refinery – was also raising acquisitions of alternative types of crude, according to two insiders. Tupras was also likely to in the near future entirely phase out imports from Russia at a key facility of its two major Turkish plants to maintain petroleum exports to Europe without breaching the European Union's incoming sanctions. Tupras declined to comment to a request for a statement.

Ukraine Sends Special Forces to Eastern City

Ukraine has sent elite troops to the heavily contested eastern city of Pokrovsk in an effort to repel an intense Moscow's offensive involving thousands of soldiers, as stated by Ukraine's senior commander. The city, called “the entrance to Donetsk,” lies on a key logistical route for the Ukrainian military and has been under Russia's sights for more than a year as Russia aims to control the whole east Donetsk area.

Latest Updates in Pokrovsk

No fewer than two hundred Moscow's soldiers had breached the city's defensive lines, Ukrainian officials said recently, while military experts assessed that others were advancing on its perimeter in a encircling maneuver. In his evening speech on Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the combat in the city and “results in the destruction of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Strengthened Air Defence Network

The president, who has been urging his partners for additional air defense systems to hold off Russia’s strikes, stated on Sunday that the country had strengthened its air defense network with Germany’s support. “We have strengthened the Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defence,” he said, mentioning the sophisticated American defense systems. Without offering additional information, the Ukraine's president singled out Germany and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for thanks.

Russian Attacks Claim Innocents, Cut Power

Moscow's drones and missiles fired at Ukraine killed at least six individuals, among them 2 children, and disrupted power to tens of thousands of households, authorities said on this past Sunday. Moscow's military struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, said the representatives of Ukraine’s prosecutor general. The victims were male minors of ages 11 and fourteen, stated Ukraine’s ombudsman. The attacks disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk region as well as almost 58 thousand homes in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders announced. The Vostok army group confirmed a number of its personnel were killed in a particular of the Russian strikes on Dnipropetrovsk.