🔗 Share this article

Ex-President Trump indicated this past Sunday that he is not seriously considering providing Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles. When questioned by a journalist on Air Force One, he replied, “No, not really.” Earlier accounts had claimed the Pentagon informed the administration that U.S. inventories of Tomahawks were adequate to enable such a transfer.

Ukraine's Defense Actions Persist Without Weapon Shortage

While Ukrainian forces has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to carry out long-range strikes against Russian targets, it has nonetheless succeeded to conduct a effective campaign using its domestically-produced drones and missiles against Moscow's military and strategic objectives, including fuel storage facilities and refineries. On Sunday, a Kyiv's airstrike hit the Tuapse oil port on the coast, igniting a fire and damaging two ships, according to Moscow authorities. Adjacent Russian airports in the region also had to be shut down.

Turkey Oil Plants Shift to Alternative Oil Supplies

Ankara's biggest oil refining facilities are boosting purchases of alternative crude in response to the latest western restrictions on Moscow, according to market sources. The country is a major purchaser of oil from Russia, together with Beijing and New Delhi, but processing companies are mirroring New Delhi's lead in reducing imports.

STAR Refinery Diversifies Crude Procurement

A major Turkish refineries, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azerbaijani firm SOCAR, has lately purchased four cargoes of crude from Iraqi, Kazakh, and additional non-Russian suppliers for December delivery, as per insiders. This represent approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian crude, depending on shipment volume. By comparison, oil from Russia accounted for nearly the entirety of the plant's supply in recent months, amounting to approximately 210,000 barrels per day, according to market data. SOCAR declined to comment.

Another Major Refiner Likewise Increasing Alternative Buys

The other leading Turkey's refiner – Tupras refinery – was additionally increasing acquisitions of non-Russian grades of crude, according to two sources. The company was furthermore expected to in the near future completely phase out Russian crude at a key facility of its two major domestic refineries to continue petroleum shipments to Europe without violating the European Union's incoming restrictions. Tupras declined to comment to a request for comment.

Ukraine Deploys Special Forces to Pokrovsk

Ukraine has deployed elite troops to the heavily contested east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an intense Russian offensive involving a large number of troops, as stated by Ukraine's senior military leader. The city, dubbed “the gateway to Donetsk,” lies on a major supply line for the Kyiv's army and has been under Russia's crosshairs for more than a twelve months as Russia aims to seize the whole eastern Donetsk area.

Latest Updates in the City

No fewer than 200 Moscow's soldiers had penetrated Pokrovsk’s defensive lines, Kyiv reported recently, while military experts concluded that others were advancing on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his nightly speech on this past Sunday, the Ukrainian president mentioned the fighting in Pokrovsk and “successes in the destruction of the invading forces.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Enhanced Air Defence System

The president, who has been pushing his partners for additional air defense systems to hold off Russia’s strikes, stated on this past Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air-defence capabilities with Germany’s support. “We've boosted the U.S.-made Patriot element of our Ukrainian air defense,” he said, referring to the advanced American air-defence systems. Not providing additional information, the Ukrainian president specifically thanked Germany and its leader, Friedrich Merz, for thanks.

Moscow's Attacks Kill Innocents, Cut Electricity

Moscow's drones and missiles fired at Ukraine killed at least six individuals, including 2 children, and cut electricity to thousands of residents, officials said on Sunday. Moscow's military attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, according to the representatives of the country's chief prosecutor. The children were male minors of ages eleven and 14, said the nation's ombudsman. Russia’s strikes disrupted power to the whole east Donetsk region as well as almost 58 thousand households in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their governors announced. Ukraine’s Vostok military unit confirmed a number of its personnel were killed in one of the enemy attacks on the region.