🔗 Share this article Trump Says He Isn't Contemplating Supplying Tomahawk Missiles to Ukraine. FormerPresident Trump indicated on Sunday that he is not really planning providing Ukraine with advanced Tomahawk cruise missiles. After being asked by a reporter aboard Air Force One, he responded, “No, not really.” Earlier reports had suggested the Pentagon informed the administration that American stockpiles of Tomahawks were adequate to enable this transfer. Ukraine's Defense Actions Continue Despite Weapon Lack While Ukrainian forces has been seeking Tomahawk missiles to carry out far-reaching attacks against Russia, it has nonetheless succeeded to wage a effective operation using its domestically-produced drones and missiles against Russian armed and key targets, such as fuel storage facilities and processing plants. On Sunday, a Ukrainian airstrike hit the port facility on the Black Sea, igniting a fire and damaging two ships, according to Moscow officials. Nearby Russian airports in the region also had to be closed. Turkish Oil Plants Shift to Non-Russian Crude Sources Turkey's largest oil refining facilities are increasing purchases of non-Russian crude in response to the latest western sanctions on Russia, according to industry insiders. The country is a significant buyer of oil from Russia, along with Beijing and India, but processing companies are mirroring India's example in reducing imports. STAR Refinery Expands Oil Sources One of the largest Turkey's refineries, the STAR refinery, operated by Azerbaijani company SOCAR, has recently acquired four cargoes of crude from Iraq, Kazakh, and other non-Russian producers for year-end arrival, according to insiders. These purchases represent approximately 77,000 to 129,000 barrels per day (bpd) of non-Russian supply, depending on shipment volume. In contrast, Russian crude made up virtually all of the plant's crude intake in October and September, totaling approximately 210,000 barrels per day, according to trade information. SOCAR declined to comment. Tupras Likewise Increasing Non-Russian Buys Another major Turkey's refiner – Tupras – was additionally increasing purchases of non-Russian grades of crude, as stated by two insiders. The company was also expected to soon completely eliminate imports from Russia at a key facility of its two main Turkish refineries to maintain petroleum exports to the EU without breaching the EU’s incoming sanctions. The refiner declined to comment to a request for comment. Ukraine Sends Elite Units to Eastern City Kyiv has deployed special forces to the embattled east city of Pokrovsk in an attempt to push back an intense Russian assault comprising thousands of soldiers, as stated by Kyiv’s top commander. Pokrovsk, dubbed “the entrance to Donetsk,” is located on a major logistical route for the Kyiv's army and has been under Moscow’s crosshairs for more than a twelve months as Moscow aims to control the entire eastern Donetsk area. Latest Developments in Pokrovsk At least 200 Moscow's troops had breached Pokrovsk’s defences, Ukrainian officials reported recently, while military experts concluded that others were closing in on its outskirts in a pincer-shaped movement. In his evening speech on Sunday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of the combat in Pokrovsk and “successes in the destruction of the occupiers.” Ukrainian President Announces Enhanced Air Defense System Zelenskyy, who has been pushing his partners for more air defences to hold off Russia’s attacks, stated on this past Sunday that Ukraine had reinforced its air-defence network with Germany’s support. “We have boosted the U.S.-made Patriot element of our national air defense,” he declared, mentioning the sophisticated U.S.-made defense systems. Without providing further details, the Ukraine's president singled out Germany and its leader, the German chancellor, for gratitude. Moscow's Strikes Claim Civilians, Disrupt Electricity Moscow's unmanned aircraft and missiles targeting Ukrainian territory took the lives of at least 6 individuals, among them 2 children, and disrupted electricity to thousands of residents, authorities reported on this past Sunday. Russian forces struck the Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa areas, said the office of Ukraine’s chief prosecutor. The children were two boys aged 11 and fourteen, stated the nation's ombudsman. Russia’s strikes disrupted electricity to the whole eastern Donetsk region as well as nearly 58,000 households in the south Zaporizhzhia region, their local leaders said. The Vostok military unit confirmed some of its members were killed in a particular of the Russian attacks on Dnipropetrovsk.