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Ex-President Donald Trump stated this past Sunday that he was not seriously planning supplying Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. When questioned by a reporter aboard Air Force One, he answered, “No, not currently.” Recent reports had indicated the U.S. Department of Defense told the administration that U.S. stockpiles of Tomahawks were adequate to allow this transfer.

Ukraine's Military Actions Persist Despite Weapon Shortage

Although Ukraine has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching strikes against Russian targets, it has still managed to wage a effective campaign using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Russian military and key targets, including oil depots and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Kyiv's drone attack struck the port facility on the Black Sea, igniting a fire and harming two vessels, according to Russian officials. Adjacent airfields in the area also had to be shut down.

Turkish Refineries Shift to Alternative Oil Sources

Turkey's biggest oil refining facilities are boosting purchases of alternative crude in response to the latest western sanctions on Moscow, according to market insiders. The country is a significant buyer of Russian crude, along with China and New Delhi, but processing companies are following New Delhi's example in reducing supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Diversifies Oil Procurement

One of the largest Turkish refining plants, the STAR refinery, operated by Azeri company SOCAR, has lately purchased four cargoes of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other non-Russian suppliers for December arrival, according to insiders. These purchases amount to approximately tens of thousands of barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian supply, varying by shipment volume. In contrast, oil from Russia accounted for virtually all of the plant's supply in October and September, amounting to about 210,000 bpd, based on trade data. SOCAR declined to provide a statement.

Tupras Also Boosting Alternative Buys

The other major Turkish oil processor – Tupras refinery – was also raising acquisitions of alternative types of crude, according to two sources. The company was also expected to soon entirely eliminate Russian crude at a key facility of its two major Turkish plants to continue fuel shipments to the EU without breaching the European Union's incoming sanctions. Tupras did not respond to a request for comment.

Ukraine Deploys Special Forces to Eastern City

Kyiv has deployed elite troops to the embattled eastern city of Pokrovsk in an effort to repel an intense Russian offensive comprising thousands of troops, according to Ukraine's senior commander. The city, called “the gateway to Donetsk,” lies on a key logistical line for the Kyiv's army and has been under Moscow’s crosshairs for more than a year as Russia pushes to seize the whole eastern Donetsk area.

Latest Developments in the City

No fewer than two hundred Moscow's troops had breached Pokrovsk’s defensive lines, Ukrainian officials said recently, while military experts assessed that others were closing in on its outskirts in a pincer-shaped movement. In his evening speech on Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned the combat in Pokrovsk and “results in the elimination of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Announces Enhanced Air Defense Network

Zelenskyy, who has been pushing his partners for additional air defences to counter Russia’s attacks, announced on this past Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air-defence capabilities with Germany’s assistance. “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 offering further details, the Ukrainian president singled out Germany and its leader, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Moscow's Strikes Claim Civilians, Disrupt Electricity

Russian unmanned aircraft and rockets targeting Ukrainian territory killed at least 6 individuals, among them 2 minors, and cut electricity to tens of thousands of households, authorities reported on Sunday. Moscow's military attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, according to the representatives of the country's prosecutor general. The victims were two boys aged eleven and fourteen, stated the nation's ombudsman. Russia’s attacks disrupted electricity to the entire eastern Donetsk region as well as nearly 58 thousand households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their governors announced. Ukraine’s Eastern military unit said some of its personnel were killed in one of the enemy strikes on the region.