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Ex-President Donald Trump remarked on Sunday that he is not seriously planning sending Ukraine with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. In response to a query by a reporter on Air Force One, he responded, “No, not really.” Earlier reports had indicated the Pentagon informed the White House that American stockpiles of Tomahawks were adequate to enable such a delivery.

Ukrainian Defense Actions Continue Without Weapon Lack

While Ukrainian forces has been seeking Tomahawk missiles to carry out long-range attacks against Russian targets, it has still managed to wage a successful operation using its domestically-produced unmanned aerial vehicles and rockets against Moscow's armed and key objectives, including oil depots and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Kyiv's airstrike struck the port facility on the coast, igniting a fire and harming two ships, according to Moscow authorities. Nearby Russian airports in the area also had to be shut down.

Turkish Refineries Turn to Non-Russian Oil Supplies

Ankara's largest oil refining facilities are increasing purchases of alternative crude in response to the recent western restrictions on Moscow, as reported by market insiders. The country is a major buyer of oil from Russia, along with China and New Delhi, but processing companies are mirroring India's lead in reducing imports.

SOCAR Turkey Refinery Diversifies Crude Sources

A major Turkey's refineries, the STAR refinery, owned by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has recently acquired four shipments of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other non-Russian suppliers for year-end delivery, as per sources. This amount to roughly tens of thousands of barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian crude, depending on cargo size. In contrast, oil from Russia accounted for virtually the entirety of the STAR refinery's crude intake in October and September, amounting to approximately 210 thousand barrels per day, according to trade information. SOCAR refused to provide a statement.

Tupras Also Increasing Non-Russian Buys

Another major Turkish refiner – Tupras – was additionally raising purchases of alternative grades of crude, according to multiple sources. The company was also expected to in the near future entirely eliminate imports from Russia at one of its primary major domestic plants to maintain petroleum exports to the EU without breaching the European Union's incoming sanctions. Tupras declined to comment to a inquiry for a statement.

Ukraine Deploys Special Forces to Eastern City

Kyiv has sent elite troops to the embattled eastern city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an fierce Russian offensive comprising a large number of troops, according to Ukraine's top commander. Pokrovsk, called “the entrance to Donetsk,” lies on a major logistical route for the Ukrainian army and has been under Moscow’s sights for over a twelve months as Moscow pushes to control the whole eastern Donetsk area.

Latest Updates in Pokrovsk

No fewer than 200 Russian troops had breached the city's defensive lines, Ukrainian officials reported last week, while analysts assessed that others were closing in on its perimeter in a pincer-shaped maneuver. In his nightly speech on this past Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the combat in Pokrovsk and “results in the destruction of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Strengthened Air Defence System

The president, who has been pushing his allies for more air defense systems to counter Moscow's strikes, stated on this past Sunday that Ukraine had strengthened its air-defence network with Berlin's support. “We've strengthened the U.S.-made Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defence,” Zelenskyy said, mentioning the advanced American defense systems. Without offering additional details, the Ukraine's president specifically thanked Germany and its leader, Friedrich Merz, for thanks.

Moscow's Strikes Kill Civilians, Disrupt Electricity

Russian drones and missiles fired at Ukrainian territory killed at least 6 people, including two minors, and cut power to tens of thousands of residents, authorities said on this past Sunday. Moscow's military struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa regions, said the representatives of Ukraine’s prosecutor general. The victims were two boys aged eleven and 14, stated the nation's human rights commissioner. The attacks cut electricity to the whole east Donetsk area as well as nearly 58 thousand homes in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders announced. The Vostok army group confirmed a number of its members were killed in a particular of the Russian strikes on the region.