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FormerPresident Donald Trump indicated this past Sunday that he is not seriously planning providing Ukrainian forces with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a reporter on his plane, he replied, “No, not currently.” Recent accounts had claimed the Pentagon informed the White House that American inventories of Tomahawks were sufficient to enable such a transfer.

Ukrainian Defense Efforts Continue Without Missile Lack

While Ukraine has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to execute long-range attacks against Russian targets, it has still managed to conduct a successful operation using its domestically-produced unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Russian armed and key targets, such as oil depots and refineries. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian airstrike struck the port facility on the coast, causing a fire and harming two ships, according to Russian officials. Nearby airfields in the region also had to be closed.

Turkey Refineries Turn to Non-Russian Crude Supplies

Turkey's largest oil refining facilities are boosting procurement of alternative crude in reaction to the latest western restrictions on Russia, according to industry sources. The country is a major buyer of oil from Russia, along with China and India, but processing companies are following India's example in cutting back supplies.

STAR Plant Expands Crude Procurement

A major Turkey's refineries, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), operated by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has lately purchased multiple shipments of crude from Iraqi, Kazakh, and other alternative suppliers for year-end delivery, according to insiders. These purchases represent roughly tens of thousands of barrels per day (bpd) of alternative supply, depending on cargo size. In contrast, oil from Russia made up nearly all of the STAR refinery's crude intake in recent months, amounting to approximately 210 thousand bpd, based on market information. SOCAR declined to comment.

Another Major Refiner Also Boosting Non-Russian Purchases

Another leading Turkish refiner – Tupras refinery – was additionally increasing purchases of alternative grades of crude, as stated by two insiders. The company was furthermore likely to soon completely phase out imports from Russia at one of its two main Turkish plants to maintain petroleum shipments to the EU without violating the European Union's incoming sanctions. The refiner did not respond to a inquiry for comment.

Ukrainian Deploys Special Forces to Pokrovsk

Kyiv has sent special forces to the embattled east city of Pokrovsk in an effort to push back an fierce Moscow's assault comprising a large number of soldiers, as stated by Kyiv’s senior commander. Pokrovsk, called “the entrance to Donetsk,” is located on a major supply line for the Ukrainian army and has been under Russia's sights for more than a year as Russia aims to seize the whole east Donetsk region.

Latest Developments in Pokrovsk

At least 200 Russian soldiers had penetrated the city's defensive lines, Ukrainian officials said recently, while analysts assessed that others were advancing on its perimeter in a encircling maneuver. In his nightly address on this past Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the fighting in the city and “successes in the elimination of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Strengthened Air Defence Network

The president, who has been pushing his allies for additional air defences to counter Moscow's strikes, announced on Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air defense network with Germany’s assistance. “We have boosted the U.S.-made Patriot element of our Ukrainian air defence,” he said, mentioning the sophisticated U.S.-made defense systems. Without offering further details, the Ukraine's leader singled out Berlin and its leader, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Russian Strikes Kill Civilians, Disrupt Power

Moscow's drones and rockets targeting Ukrainian territory killed at least 6 people, among them 2 minors, and disrupted electricity to tens of thousands of residents, officials reported on this past Sunday. Russian forces attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, according to the office of the country's prosecutor general. The children were two boys aged eleven and 14, stated Ukraine’s human rights commissioner. The strikes cut electricity to the entire eastern Donetsk area as well as nearly 58 thousand homes in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders said. The Eastern military unit confirmed a number of its personnel were killed in one of the Russian attacks on Dnipropetrovsk.