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FormerPresident Donald Trump stated on Sunday that he is not seriously planning supplying Ukrainian forces with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a reporter aboard his plane, he replied, “No, not currently.” Recent accounts had claimed the Pentagon informed the administration that American stockpiles of Tomahawks were ample to allow such a transfer.

Ukrainian Military Efforts Continue Without Missile Lack

While Ukraine has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to execute far-reaching attacks against Russia, it has nonetheless succeeded to conduct a effective campaign using its domestically-produced drones and rockets against Moscow's armed and strategic objectives, such as fuel storage facilities and refineries. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack struck the port facility on the Black Sea, causing a blaze and harming two ships, according to Russian officials. Nearby Russian airports in the area also had to be shut down.

Turkish Oil Plants Turn to Non-Russian Crude Supplies

Ankara's largest oil refining facilities are boosting procurement of alternative crude in response to the latest western sanctions on Moscow, as reported by industry insiders. The country is a significant purchaser of Russian crude, together with China and India, but refiners are following New Delhi's lead in reducing supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Plant Diversifies Oil Procurement

One of the largest Turkish refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has lately purchased four shipments of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other non-Russian producers for year-end arrival, according to insiders. This amount to approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian supply, varying by shipment volume. In contrast, Russian crude accounted for nearly all of the plant's crude intake in recent months, totaling about 210 thousand bpd, according to market data. SOCAR declined to comment.

Tupras Also Increasing Alternative Purchases

The other major Turkish refiner – Tupras refinery – was additionally raising acquisitions of alternative grades of crude, according to two sources. The company was furthermore expected to in the near future completely phase out imports from Russia at one of its primary major domestic plants to continue fuel shipments to Europe without violating the European Union's upcoming restrictions. The refiner declined to comment to a inquiry for comment.

Ukrainian Deploys Special Forces to Pokrovsk

Ukraine has sent elite troops to the embattled eastern city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to push back an intense Moscow's assault comprising thousands of troops, according to Ukraine's top commander. Pokrovsk, called “the gateway to Donetsk,” is located on a key supply route for the Kyiv's army and has been under Russia's crosshairs for more than a year as Russia pushes to control the entire east Donetsk region.

Recent Updates in the City

At least two hundred Moscow's troops had breached the city's defensive lines, Ukrainian officials said last week, while military experts assessed that additional forces were advancing on its outskirts in a encircling maneuver. In his nightly speech on Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned the combat in the city and “results in the elimination of the occupiers.”

Zelenskyy Announces Enhanced Air Defence System

The president, who has been pushing his allies for additional air defences to hold off Moscow's attacks, stated on this past Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air-defence network with Berlin's assistance. “We have boosted the Patriot component of our national air defense,” he declared, mentioning the advanced U.S.-made defense systems. Not providing further details, the Ukrainian leader specifically thanked Berlin and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for thanks.

Moscow's Attacks Kill Innocents, Cut Power

Russian unmanned aircraft and rockets fired at Ukrainian territory killed at least 6 individuals, including two minors, and disrupted electricity to thousands of households, officials reported on this past Sunday. Russian forces attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, said the office of the country's prosecutor general. The children were male minors aged eleven and fourteen, stated the nation's ombudsman. The strikes disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk area as well as nearly 58 thousand homes in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their governors announced. Ukraine’s Eastern army group confirmed some of its members were killed in one of the enemy attacks on Dnipropetrovsk.