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FormerPresident Donald Trump indicated this past Sunday that he was not actively considering supplying Ukrainian forces with advanced Tomahawk missiles. In response to a query by a journalist on his plane, he responded, “No, not really.” Recent reports had claimed the Pentagon informed the White House that American stockpiles of Tomahawks were adequate to allow this delivery.

Ukrainian Defense Actions Persist Without Weapon Shortage

While Ukraine has been seeking Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching attacks against Russian targets, it has still managed to wage a effective operation using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Russian armed and key objectives, including fuel storage facilities and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack targeted the Tuapse oil port on the Black Sea, causing a fire and damaging two vessels, according to Moscow authorities. Nearby Russian airports in the region also had to be shut down.

Turkey Refineries Turn to Non-Russian Oil Supplies

Ankara's biggest oil refineries are boosting procurement of non-Russian crude in response to the latest western sanctions on Moscow, as reported by market sources. Turkey is a significant buyer of Russian crude, together with China and New Delhi, but processing companies are following India's lead in reducing supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Expands Crude Sources

One of the largest Turkish refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), operated by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has lately purchased multiple cargoes of crude from Iraqi, Kazakh, and additional alternative suppliers for year-end arrival, as per insiders. This amount to roughly tens of thousands of barrels daily of alternative supply, varying by shipment volume. By comparison, Russian crude made up virtually the entirety of the plant's crude intake in recent months, totaling about 210,000 bpd, according to market data. SOCAR refused to comment.

Tupras Also Increasing Non-Russian Purchases

The other major Turkish oil processor – Tupras refinery – was additionally increasing purchases of non-Russian grades of crude, as stated by multiple sources. The company was furthermore likely to soon entirely phase out Russian crude at a key facility of its primary major Turkish plants to maintain petroleum exports to Europe without violating the EU’s incoming restrictions. Tupras declined to comment to a inquiry for comment.

Ukrainian Sends Elite Units to Eastern City

Ukraine has deployed elite troops to the heavily contested eastern city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an fierce Moscow's assault involving a large number of soldiers, as stated by Ukraine's senior commander. Pokrovsk, called “the gateway to Donetsk,” is located on a major supply line for the Kyiv's army and has been under Russia's sights for over a twelve months as Moscow pushes to control the entire east Donetsk area.

Latest Developments in Pokrovsk

No fewer than two hundred Moscow's soldiers had breached Pokrovsk’s defences, Kyiv said last week, while military experts assessed that others were advancing on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his nightly speech on Sunday, the Ukrainian president spoke of the fighting in the city and “successes in the destruction of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Announces Enhanced Air Defense System

Zelenskyy, who has been urging his allies for additional air defense systems to hold off Moscow's strikes, announced on Sunday that the country had strengthened its air defense capabilities with Germany’s support. “We've strengthened the U.S.-made Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defense,” he declared, referring to the sophisticated American defense systems. Without offering further information, the Ukraine's leader singled out Germany and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Russian Attacks Claim Innocents, Cut Power

Moscow's drones and rockets targeting Ukrainian territory took the lives of no fewer than six people, including 2 children, and disrupted electricity to thousands of residents, authorities reported on Sunday. Russian forces attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, said the office of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. The victims were male minors aged 11 and fourteen, said the nation's ombudsman. The attacks cut power to the entire east Donetsk region as well as almost 58 thousand homes in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their governors announced. Ukraine’s Eastern army group confirmed some of its personnel were killed in a particular of the Russian strikes on Dnipropetrovsk.