🔗 Share this article

Ex-President Trump stated this past Sunday that he was not really contemplating supplying Ukraine with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a reporter aboard his plane, he responded, “No, not currently.” Recent accounts had claimed the Pentagon informed the White House that U.S. inventories of Tomahawks were adequate to enable such a transfer.

Ukraine's Military Efforts Persist Despite Weapon Shortage

While Ukrainian forces has been pursuing Tomahawk missiles to carry out far-reaching strikes against Russia, it has nonetheless succeeded to conduct a effective campaign using its own unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles against Moscow's armed and strategic targets, including fuel storage facilities and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Ukrainian drone attack hit the port facility on the Black Sea, igniting a blaze and damaging two vessels, according to Moscow officials. Adjacent airfields in the region also had to be closed.

Turkish Oil Plants Shift to Non-Russian Crude Sources

Ankara's biggest oil refineries are increasing purchases of non-Russian crude in reaction to the recent western sanctions on Russia, as reported by industry sources. The country is a major buyer of Russian crude, together with China and India, but refiners are following India's example in reducing imports.

STAR Plant Diversifies Oil Procurement

A major Turkey's refineries, the STAR refinery, operated by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has recently purchased four shipments of crude from Iraqi, Kazakhstan, and other alternative suppliers for year-end arrival, as per sources. These purchases amount to roughly tens of thousands of barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian crude, varying by cargo size. By comparison, oil from Russia accounted for virtually all of the STAR refinery's supply in recent months, totaling about 210,000 barrels per day, according to trade data. SOCAR refused to comment.

Another Major Refiner Also Increasing Non-Russian Purchases

Another leading Turkey's refiner – Tupras – was also increasing purchases of alternative grades of crude, according to multiple sources. The company was also likely to soon entirely eliminate imports from Russia at a key facility of its two main Turkish plants to continue fuel shipments to Europe without violating the European Union's upcoming sanctions. Tupras declined to comment to a request for a statement.

Ukrainian Deploys Special Forces to Pokrovsk

Kyiv has deployed special forces to the heavily contested east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to push back an fierce Moscow's offensive comprising thousands of soldiers, according to Kyiv’s senior military leader. The city, called “the gateway to Donetsk,” lies on a key supply line for the Kyiv's army and has been under Moscow’s crosshairs for over a year as Russia pushes to control the entire east Donetsk area.

Recent Updates in the City

No fewer than 200 Russian soldiers had breached the city's defensive lines, Kyiv reported recently, while analysts concluded that additional forces were closing in on its outskirts in a encircling maneuver. In his evening speech on this past Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the fighting in Pokrovsk and “results in the elimination of the occupiers.”

Ukrainian President Reveals Enhanced Air Defence Network

The president, who has been pushing his partners for more air defences to counter Russia’s strikes, stated on Sunday that the country had reinforced its air-defence network with Germany’s assistance. “We have strengthened the Patriot element of our Ukrainian air defence,” Zelenskyy declared, referring to the advanced U.S.-made defense systems. Not providing additional information, the Ukraine's president singled out Germany and its chancellor, the German chancellor, for gratitude.

Moscow's Attacks Claim Civilians, Disrupt Electricity

Russian drones and missiles targeting Ukraine took the lives of no fewer than six people, among them 2 minors, and disrupted power to thousands of households, authorities reported on this past Sunday. Moscow's military attacked the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, said the representatives of Ukraine’s prosecutor general. The children were male minors of ages 11 and fourteen, stated the nation's ombudsman. Russia’s strikes disrupted power to the whole east Donetsk area as well as almost 58,000 households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders said. Ukraine’s Vostok army group said some of its personnel were killed in one of the Russian strikes on Dnipropetrovsk.