🔗 Share this article Donald Trump Affirms He Isn't Planning Providing Long-Range Cruise Missiles to Ukraine. FormerPresident Trump indicated on Sunday that he is not seriously considering sending Ukraine with advanced Tomahawk missiles. After being asked by a journalist on Air Force One, he replied, “No, not at the moment.” Earlier accounts had suggested the U.S. Department of Defense told the White House that U.S. inventories of Tomahawks were adequate to enable such a transfer. Ukrainian Military Actions Persist Despite Missile Lack While Ukrainian forces has been requesting Tomahawk missiles to conduct far-reaching strikes against Russian targets, it has still managed to wage a successful operation using its own drones and rockets against Moscow's military and key targets, including fuel storage facilities and processing plants. This past Sunday, a Kyiv's drone attack struck the Tuapse oil port on the coast, causing a fire and damaging two ships, as stated by Moscow officials. Nearby Russian airports in the region also had to be closed. Turkish Oil Plants Shift to Non-Russian Oil Sources Turkey's biggest oil refining facilities are increasing procurement of alternative crude in reaction to the recent international sanctions on Moscow, as reported by industry insiders. The country is a significant purchaser of Russian crude, along with Beijing and New Delhi, but refiners are mirroring New Delhi's lead in cutting back supplies. SOCAR Turkey Plant Diversifies Oil Sources A major Turkish refineries, SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR), owned by Azeri company SOCAR, has lately purchased multiple cargoes of crude from Iraqi, Kazakh, and other non-Russian suppliers for December delivery, according to sources. These purchases represent approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels daily of alternative crude, depending on cargo size. In contrast, Russian crude made up virtually all of the plant's supply in recent months, totaling approximately 210 thousand barrels per day, based on trade information. SOCAR refused to comment. Tupras Also Increasing Alternative Buys Another leading Turkish refiner – Tupras refinery – was also raising acquisitions of alternative types of crude, according to two insiders. The company was also expected to in the near future completely eliminate Russian crude at a key facility of its two major domestic refineries to maintain petroleum shipments to Europe without breaching the European Union's upcoming sanctions. The refiner did not respond to a inquiry for a statement. Ukrainian Sends Elite Units to Pokrovsk Ukraine has sent special forces to the embattled east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to repel an fierce Moscow's assault involving a large number of troops, as stated by Ukraine's senior commander. Pokrovsk, dubbed “the entrance to Donetsk,” is located on a major supply line for the Ukrainian military and has been in Russia's crosshairs for over a year as Moscow aims to control the entire eastern Donetsk area. Latest Updates in Pokrovsk No fewer than two hundred Moscow's soldiers had penetrated Pokrovsk’s defensive lines, Kyiv reported recently, while military experts assessed that others were advancing on its outskirts in a encircling movement. In his nightly speech on Sunday, the Ukrainian president mentioned the fighting in Pokrovsk and “successes in the elimination of the invading forces.” Zelenskyy Reveals Strengthened Air Defence System The president, who has been pushing his allies for more air defense systems to hold off Russia’s strikes, stated on Sunday that the country had strengthened its air-defence capabilities with Germany’s support. “We have boosted the U.S.-made Patriot component of our Ukrainian air defence,” Zelenskyy said, mentioning the advanced American air-defence systems. Without offering additional details, the Ukrainian president specifically thanked Berlin and its leader, the German chancellor, for gratitude. Russian Attacks Claim Civilians, Disrupt Power Russian drones and rockets targeting Ukrainian territory killed at least 6 people, among them 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, according to the representatives of the country's chief prosecutor. The children were male minors of ages 11 and fourteen, said the nation's ombudsman. The attacks cut electricity to the entire eastern Donetsk area as well as almost 58,000 households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders said. The Eastern military unit confirmed some of its members were killed in one of the Russian strikes on Dnipropetrovsk.