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Ex-President Donald Trump remarked on Sunday that he was not really planning sending Ukrainian forces with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a journalist on his plane, he responded, “No, not really.” Earlier accounts had claimed the U.S. Department of Defense told the White House that American stockpiles of Tomahawks were ample to allow this delivery.

Ukraine's Defense Actions Persist Despite Weapon Shortage

While Ukraine has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to execute long-range strikes against Russian targets, it has still succeeded to conduct a effective campaign using its own drones and missiles against Russian military and strategic targets, such as fuel storage facilities and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack struck the port facility on the coast, igniting a fire and harming two vessels, according to Moscow officials. Adjacent airfields in the area also had to be shut down.

Turkish Oil Plants Shift to Non-Russian Oil Supplies

Turkey's largest oil refineries are boosting procurement of non-Russian crude in response to the recent international restrictions on Russia, according to industry insiders. Turkey is a major buyer of Russian crude, along with China and New Delhi, but refiners are following New Delhi's example in reducing supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Diversifies Crude Sources

One of the largest Turkey's refining plants, the STAR refinery, owned by Azeri company SOCAR, has lately acquired four cargoes of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other non-Russian producers for year-end arrival, according to sources. These purchases amount to roughly tens of thousands of barrels daily of alternative supply, depending on cargo size. In contrast, Russian crude accounted for virtually all of the plant's crude intake in October and September, amounting to about 210 thousand bpd, based on trade data. SOCAR declined to comment.

Another Major Refiner Likewise Boosting Alternative Buys

Another leading Turkish refiner – Tupras – was additionally raising acquisitions of non-Russian grades of crude, according to two insiders. The company was also likely to soon completely phase out Russian crude at a key facility of its primary main domestic refineries to continue petroleum exports to Europe without breaching the EU’s incoming sanctions. Tupras declined to comment to a inquiry for comment.

Ukrainian Deploys Elite Units to Pokrovsk

Kyiv has deployed elite troops to the embattled east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an fierce Russian offensive comprising thousands of soldiers, according to Kyiv’s senior military leader. The city, dubbed “the gateway to Donetsk,” lies on a key logistical route for the Kyiv's military and has been in Moscow’s sights for over a year as Russia pushes to control the entire east Donetsk region.

Latest Developments in the City

No fewer than 200 Moscow's soldiers had penetrated the city's defences, Kyiv reported recently, while military experts concluded that additional forces were closing in on its outskirts in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his nightly speech on this past Sunday, the Ukrainian president mentioned the combat in Pokrovsk and “results in the destruction of the invading forces.”

Zelenskyy Reveals Enhanced Air Defence System

Zelenskyy, who has been urging his partners for additional air defences to counter Moscow's strikes, stated on this past Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air defense network with Germany’s support. “We have boosted the U.S.-made Patriot element of our Ukrainian air defence,” Zelenskyy said, mentioning the advanced American air-defence systems. Not providing further details, the Ukrainian leader singled out Berlin and its leader, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Russian Attacks Claim Innocents, Disrupt Power

Russian drones and rockets fired at Ukraine took the lives of no fewer than six people, among them two children, and disrupted power to tens of thousands of households, authorities said on this past Sunday. Moscow's military attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, said the office of the country's prosecutor general. The victims were two boys of ages eleven and fourteen, said the nation's human rights commissioner. The strikes cut power to the entire eastern Donetsk region as well as almost 58,000 homes in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders announced. Ukraine’s Eastern military unit confirmed some of its members were killed in one of the enemy attacks on the region.