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Ex-President Donald Trump stated on Sunday that he was not seriously considering providing Ukrainian forces with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a reporter aboard Air Force One, he replied, “No, not really.” Earlier accounts had suggested the U.S. Department of Defense informed the administration that American inventories of Tomahawks were ample to enable this delivery.

Ukraine's Defense Actions Continue Without Weapon Lack

While Ukrainian forces has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to carry out long-range attacks against Russian targets, it has nonetheless succeeded to wage a successful operation using its own drones and missiles against Moscow's armed and key objectives, including oil depots and refineries. This past Sunday, a Kyiv's drone attack targeted the Tuapse oil port on the Black Sea, igniting a fire and damaging two ships, as stated by Moscow officials. Adjacent airfields in the region also had to be closed.

Turkish Oil Plants Shift to Alternative Oil Supplies

Turkey's largest oil refineries are increasing purchases of non-Russian crude in reaction to the recent western sanctions on Moscow, as reported by market sources. The country is a major purchaser of Russian crude, along with China and New Delhi, but refiners are mirroring India's example in reducing imports.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Expands Crude Procurement

One of the largest Turkey's refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has lately purchased four cargoes of crude from Iraqi, Kazakh, and other alternative producers for December delivery, as per insiders. This represent roughly 77,000 to 129,000 barrels daily of alternative crude, depending on cargo size. In contrast, Russian crude made up nearly all of the plant's supply in recent months, amounting to approximately 210 thousand bpd, based on market data. SOCAR refused to comment.

Tupras Likewise Boosting Non-Russian Purchases

Another major Turkey's oil processor – Tupras – was also increasing purchases of non-Russian grades of crude, according to multiple insiders. The company was furthermore likely to soon entirely phase out imports from Russia at one of its two major domestic refineries to maintain petroleum exports to the EU without violating the European Union's upcoming sanctions. The refiner did not respond to a inquiry for a statement.

Ukraine Deploys Special Forces to Eastern City

Kyiv has deployed special forces to the embattled east city of Pokrovsk in an effort to repel an intense Moscow's offensive involving a large number of soldiers, as stated by Ukraine's top commander. Pokrovsk, dubbed “the gateway to Donetsk,” is located on a key logistical line for the Kyiv's military and has been in Russia's sights for over a year as Russia pushes to seize the entire east Donetsk region.

Recent Developments in the City

No fewer than two hundred Moscow's troops had breached the city's defensive lines, Kyiv said last week, while military experts assessed that others were closing in on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his evening speech on this past Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned the combat in Pokrovsk and “successes in the elimination of the invading forces.”

Ukrainian President Announces Enhanced Air Defence Network

The president, who has been urging his partners for additional air defense systems to counter Moscow's attacks, announced on this past Sunday that the country had strengthened its air-defence network with Berlin's support. “We have strengthened the U.S.-made Patriot component of our national air defense,” he said, mentioning the advanced American air-defence systems. Without offering further details, the Ukraine's leader singled out Berlin and its leader, Friedrich Merz, for thanks.

Moscow's Attacks Claim Innocents, Cut Electricity

Moscow's drones and rockets targeting Ukraine took the lives of no fewer than 6 individuals, among them 2 children, and disrupted electricity to tens of thousands of households, officials said on Sunday. Moscow's military struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, according to the office of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. The children were two boys of ages 11 and fourteen, said Ukraine’s ombudsman. The strikes cut power to the whole east Donetsk area as well as nearly 58,000 households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their governors announced. Ukraine’s Eastern army group said a number of its personnel were killed in one of the Russian attacks on Dnipropetrovsk.