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FormerPresident Trump stated on Sunday that he was not really considering sending Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a journalist on Air Force One, he responded, “No, not really.” Recent reports had claimed the Pentagon informed the administration that American inventories of Tomahawks were sufficient to enable this delivery.

Ukraine's Defense Efforts Persist Without Missile Shortage

Although Ukrainian forces has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching attacks against Russian targets, it has still succeeded to wage a successful operation using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Moscow's military and strategic objectives, such as fuel storage facilities and processing plants. On Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack struck the Tuapse oil port on the coast, igniting a fire and harming two vessels, according to Moscow authorities. Nearby Russian airports in the region also had to be shut down.

Turkey Refineries Shift to Alternative Crude Supplies

Ankara's largest oil refining facilities are boosting procurement of alternative crude in reaction to the recent western sanctions on Russia, according to market insiders. The country is a significant buyer of oil from Russia, along with Beijing and India, but refiners are mirroring India's lead in cutting back supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Expands Crude Procurement

A major Turkey's refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), operated by Azeri company SOCAR, has recently acquired multiple cargoes of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and additional alternative producers for year-end arrival, as per sources. These purchases amount to approximately tens of thousands of barrels daily of non-Russian crude, varying by cargo size. In contrast, Russian crude made up nearly all of the plant's crude intake in October and September, totaling about 210,000 barrels per day, based on market information. SOCAR refused to comment.

Tupras Also Boosting Non-Russian Purchases

Another major Turkey's oil processor – Tupras – was additionally increasing acquisitions of alternative types of crude, as stated by multiple sources. Tupras was furthermore expected to soon entirely eliminate Russian crude at a key facility of its two major domestic plants to maintain petroleum exports to Europe without breaching the EU’s upcoming sanctions. The refiner declined to comment to a request for comment.

Ukrainian Deploys Special Forces to Pokrovsk

Kyiv has deployed elite troops to the embattled eastern city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an fierce Russian offensive comprising a large number of soldiers, according to Kyiv’s top commander. The city, dubbed “the entrance to Donetsk,” lies on a major supply route for the Kyiv's army and has been in Moscow’s sights for more than a year as Russia pushes to control the whole eastern Donetsk region.

Latest Developments in the City

At least 200 Russian soldiers had breached Pokrovsk’s defensive lines, Ukrainian officials reported recently, while military experts assessed that additional forces were closing in on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his nightly speech on this past Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the combat in the city and “successes in the destruction of the occupiers.”

Zelenskyy Announces Strengthened Air Defense System

The president, who has been pushing his partners for additional air defense systems to counter Russia’s strikes, stated on this past Sunday that the country had reinforced its air-defence capabilities with Berlin's support. “We've strengthened the Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defense,” Zelenskyy declared, referring to the sophisticated U.S.-made defense systems. Without providing additional information, the Ukraine's leader singled out Berlin and its chancellor, Friedrich Merz, for gratitude.

Moscow's Strikes Kill Innocents, Disrupt Power

Russian drones and rockets fired at Ukraine took the lives of at least six people, including two minors, and disrupted electricity to tens of thousands of residents, officials said on Sunday. Russian forces struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, said the representatives of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. The victims were two boys aged 11 and 14, stated Ukraine’s ombudsman. Russia’s strikes disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk area as well as nearly 58 thousand households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their governors said. The Vostok army group said some of its members were killed in a particular of the Russian strikes on Dnipropetrovsk.