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FormerPresident Trump stated on Sunday that he was not really planning sending Ukrainian forces with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a journalist on Air Force One, he replied, “No, not really.” Earlier accounts had indicated the Pentagon informed the administration that U.S. stockpiles of Tomahawks were ample to allow such a transfer.

Ukraine's Defense Efforts Persist Without Weapon Shortage

Although Ukraine has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching attacks against Russian targets, it has nonetheless succeeded to conduct a successful operation using its domestically-produced unmanned aerial vehicles and rockets against Russian armed and strategic objectives, such as oil depots and refineries. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack targeted the Tuapse oil port on the Black Sea, causing a fire and harming two ships, according to Moscow officials. Adjacent Russian airports in the area also had to be shut down.

Turkey Oil Plants Shift to Alternative Oil Sources

Turkey's largest oil refineries are increasing procurement of non-Russian crude in response to the latest western sanctions on Russia, according to market sources. The country is a major purchaser of oil from Russia, along with Beijing and India, but refiners are mirroring India's example in reducing supplies.

SOCAR Turkey Plant Diversifies Oil Procurement

A major Turkish refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azerbaijani firm SOCAR, has recently purchased four shipments of crude from Iraqi, Kazakhstan, and additional non-Russian suppliers for December delivery, according to sources. This amount to roughly tens of thousands of barrels per day (bpd) of alternative crude, varying by shipment volume. In contrast, Russian crude made up nearly the entirety of the STAR refinery's supply in recent months, amounting to approximately 210 thousand bpd, according to market data. SOCAR declined to comment.

Tupras Likewise Increasing Alternative Buys

The other major Turkish oil processor – Tupras refinery – was additionally increasing acquisitions of alternative types of crude, according to two insiders. Tupras was furthermore likely to in the near future completely eliminate imports from Russia at a key facility of its primary main domestic refineries to maintain petroleum exports to the EU without breaching the EU’s incoming restrictions. Tupras declined to comment to a request for comment.

Ukraine Deploys Elite Units to Eastern City

Kyiv has sent special forces to the heavily contested east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an intense Moscow's offensive involving a large number of soldiers, as stated by Ukraine's senior military leader. The city, dubbed “the gateway to Donetsk,” lies on a key logistical line for the Kyiv's military and has been under Moscow’s sights for more than a year as Moscow aims to seize the whole eastern Donetsk region.

Latest Developments in the City

No fewer than 200 Russian troops had breached the city's defensive lines, Ukrainian officials said recently, while analysts assessed that additional forces were closing in on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his evening speech on Sunday, the Ukrainian president spoke of the combat in Pokrovsk and “results in the destruction of the invading forces.”

Zelenskyy Announces Strengthened Air Defense System

Zelenskyy, who has been urging his partners for additional air defences to hold off Russia’s attacks, stated on Sunday that the country had reinforced its air defense network with Germany’s assistance. “We've boosted the Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defence,” Zelenskyy declared, referring to the advanced U.S.-made air-defence systems. Not offering additional details, the Ukrainian leader singled out Berlin and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Russian Strikes Kill Civilians, Cut Power

Russian unmanned aircraft and rockets fired at Ukrainian territory killed no fewer than six individuals, including 2 children, and disrupted power to tens of thousands of residents, authorities 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 two boys aged 11 and 14, stated Ukraine’s human rights commissioner. Russia’s strikes disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk area as well as nearly 58,000 homes in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders announced. The Eastern military unit confirmed some of its members were killed in a particular of the enemy attacks on Dnipropetrovsk.