🔗 Share this article

Ex-President Trump stated this past Sunday that he is not really planning supplying Ukrainian forces with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a reporter on Air Force One, he replied, “No, not at the moment.” Earlier reports had suggested the U.S. Department of Defense told the White House that U.S. stockpiles of Tomahawks were adequate to allow this transfer.

Ukraine's Defense Efforts Persist Without Missile Lack

Although Ukrainian forces has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to carry out long-range strikes against Russia, it has nonetheless succeeded to wage a effective campaign using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Russian military and key objectives, such as fuel storage facilities and refineries. On Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack hit the port facility on the Black Sea, igniting a fire and damaging two ships, according to Moscow officials. Adjacent Russian airports in the region also had to be closed.

Turkish Refineries Shift to Non-Russian Crude Sources

Ankara's largest oil refineries are boosting procurement of non-Russian crude in reaction to the recent international restrictions on Moscow, according to market insiders. Turkey is a significant purchaser of oil from Russia, together with Beijing and India, but refiners are mirroring New Delhi's lead in cutting back imports.

SOCAR Turkey Plant Expands Oil Procurement

One of the largest Turkey's refining plants, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), operated by Azeri company SOCAR, has recently acquired four shipments of crude from Iraq, Kazakhstan, and additional non-Russian suppliers for December arrival, as per sources. These purchases amount to approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian crude, depending on cargo size. In contrast, oil from Russia accounted for nearly the entirety of the STAR refinery's supply in October and September, totaling about 210,000 bpd, according to trade data. SOCAR declined to provide a statement.

Tupras Also Increasing Non-Russian Buys

The other major Turkey's refiner – Tupras – was also raising purchases of non-Russian types of crude, as stated by multiple insiders. Tupras was furthermore likely to soon entirely phase out Russian crude at one of its two major domestic refineries to continue fuel exports to the EU without breaching the European Union's incoming restrictions. The refiner did not respond to a request for comment.

Ukraine Sends Special Forces to Eastern City

Ukraine has sent special forces to the heavily contested eastern city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to push back an fierce Moscow's assault comprising a large number of troops, as stated by Kyiv’s senior military leader. Pokrovsk, dubbed “the entrance to Donetsk,” is located on a key supply route for the Ukrainian military and has been under Russia's sights for over a year as Moscow aims to control the entire east Donetsk area.

Latest Updates in Pokrovsk

No fewer than two hundred Russian soldiers had breached Pokrovsk’s defences, Ukrainian officials reported recently, while analysts assessed that additional forces were advancing on its outskirts in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his evening address on this past Sunday, the Ukrainian president spoke of the fighting in Pokrovsk and “successes in the destruction of the invading forces.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Enhanced Air Defense Network

Zelenskyy, who has been pushing his allies for additional air defense systems to hold off Russia’s strikes, announced on Sunday that the country had strengthened its air-defence network with Germany’s support. “We have strengthened the Patriot component of our national air defence,” he declared, mentioning the advanced American air-defence systems. Without providing additional information, the Ukraine's leader specifically thanked Berlin and its chancellor, Friedrich Merz, for thanks.

Moscow's Attacks Claim Civilians, Disrupt Power

Russian unmanned aircraft and missiles fired at Ukraine killed at least six individuals, among them two children, and cut electricity to thousands of households, authorities reported on this past Sunday. Russian forces struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, said the representatives of Ukraine’s prosecutor general. The victims were male minors of ages 11 and 14, stated Ukraine’s human rights commissioner. The attacks cut power to the entire east Donetsk area as well as nearly 58 thousand households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their governors said. The Vostok army group said a number of its members were killed in a particular of the Russian strikes on the region.