Washington Asked Kyiv to Stop Hitting Russian Oil
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27 OCTOBER 2026
By Mike Leesponsored Ukraine’s New Strategy |
Why has Ukraine suddenly started hitting Russia so hard? In a surprising twist, Ukraine has sharply intensified its strikes deep inside Russia — hitting oil infrastructure and other strategic targets. But why now? What is really behind this sudden escalation — and what does it have to do with Trump’s plan for ending the war? This unexpected shift could have major consequences for the war, energy markets, the economy, and your financial future. Warning: the real story may not be the strikes themselves. It may be what Ukraine is trying to force Russia — and Trump — to do next. |
Three Numbers to Start
$115.41 | Brent crude on Monday morning, 13% higher than a month earlier and 75% above a year ago. |
$148.3B | raised in US IPOs so far this year from 118 deals, Renaissance Capital counts, more than four times last year’s pace. |
1 Jan | the day the Pentagon stops accepting tungsten mined or refined in China, Russia, North Korea or Iran. |
ad Why has Ukraine suddenly started hitting Russia so hard? See What’s Behind It |
Washington Asked Kyiv to Stop Hitting Russian Oil. Kyiv Said No
Brent crude traded at $115.41 a barrel on Monday morning, up from $101.86 a month earlier and $65.93 a year ago. Supply from the Gulf is still tight, and Russia’s refineries and export terminals remain targets for Ukrainian drones.
The diplomacy picked up last week. Steve Witkoff, the American envoy, met President Zelenskyy and European leaders in Oslo on 20 October, then flew to St Petersburg and spent about three hours with Vladimir Putin on 21 October, his ninth meeting with him in person. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Russia was ready in principle to resume talks with Washington and Kyiv, possibly in mid-November in Abu Dhabi. Zelenskyy backed three-way talks at negotiator level by early November and said Kyiv supports an energy ceasefire.
Oil is the lever both sides are pulling. President Trump asked Ukraine to halt its strikes on Russian oil infrastructure, and Kyiv refused, the Associated Press reported. Washington has temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian diesel sales under the import deal Trump announced earlier this month, and Trump has held off on new sanctions against Moscow. Zelenskyy wants them imposed.
The real story is not the strikes. It is what Kyiv is trying to force Moscow and Washington to do next. The video at the top of this letter lays out the answer.
Musk Opened Merger Talks Between SpaceX and Tesla
On SpaceX’s third-quarter call on 20 October, Elon Musk said both companies had set up special committees of independent directors to study a combination, at shareholders’ request. “Because I’m a conflicted party, I can’t actually be in the discussions,” he said, adding: “I think it would be a good idea.” Gene Munster of Deepwater Asset Management puts the chance of a deal within two years at 95%. SpaceX is worth more than $2 trillion on the market and Tesla nearly $1.5 trillion, Axios reported.
The votes are lopsided. Musk holds more than half of SpaceX’s voting power, so its side is easy. Tesla needs support from half of all outstanding shares, not just those voted, which Musk called “quite a high hurdle.” Tesla’s annual meeting on 3 December carries no merger proposal. A shareholder letter urging a fast deal, with 6,493 signatures behind more than 17.5 million shares, was due at Tesla’s board on Monday. The two companies already trade: SpaceX bought about $506 million of Megapack batteries and $130 million of Cybertrucks from Tesla in 2025.
The market for new listings has rarely paid this well. Renaissance Capital counts 118 US IPOs this year, 34.8% fewer than last year, but they raised $148.3 billion, up 358.6%. Another 209 companies have filed. June was the busiest month, with 19 listings, and September the quietest, with seven.
Jeff Brown says he read SpaceX’s 308-page IPO filing and found in it the AI startup he expects to be Musk’s next IPO. Sales were about $2 billion a year ago and have jumped more than 20 times. He expects the listing by the end of this month. The name is on the page below, with a stake before IPO day starting under $50.
sponsored Musk’s Next IPO |
Buried in 308 Pages of SpaceX's IPO Paperwork: The Name of Elon Musk's NEXT IPO (It Could Be Bigger Than SpaceX) While everyone was distracted by the SpaceX IPO… Elon Musk quietly started backing a NEW AI startup. And he described the deal in SpaceX's own IPO filing. Most people will never read it. It's buried in 308 pages of dense legal and technical jargon that would put anyone to sleep. But former tech executive Jeff Brown read every page. And here's what he found… It isn't rockets… satellites… or self-driving cars. It's a startup that's growing faster than Tesla… faster than SpaceX… faster than any of Elon's ventures. Sales were about $2 billion a year ago. They've jumped more than 20 times higher since. The CEO is projecting 8,000% growth this year. And Bloomberg just confirmed it's moving toward "a blockbuster IPO." Jeff believes it could go public by the end of this month. Which is why, for the first time ever, he's revealing the name… completely free of charge. Along with how to claim your stake BEFORE the masses get in on IPO day. Starting with less than $50, right from your computer. I can't put the name in an email. It's on the page below, with the full story. - Chris P.S. Jeff picked Bitcoin, Tesla and Nvidia before they exploded higher. He's calling this the fastest tech moonshot he's ever seen. |
The Pentagon’s Ban on Chinese Tungsten Starts on 1 January
The Defense Department finished the rule on 30 May 2024, under the defense authorization acts for 2021 and 2024. Today the tungsten metal powder and heavy alloy in American weapons cannot be melted or produced in China, Russia, North Korea or Iran. From 1 January 2027 the ban reaches back to the start of the chain: the metal also cannot be mined, refined or separated in those countries.
That leaves a gap at home. The US Geological Survey says tungsten has not been mined commercially in the United States since 2015. China, the dominant supplier, said in December that only 15 companies may export tungsten in 2026 and 2027. Outside China, Almonty Industries started mining at its Sangdong mine in South Korea in March. The world used about 129,000 tonnes in 2025, Project Blue estimates, and defense took about 12%, a share expected to reach about 15% by 2027 or 2028, Reuters reported. Cristina Belda of Argus says defense demand grows about 8% a year and could pass the car industry, now the largest user, by the mid-2030s.
Prices have swung hard. Ammonium paratungstate, the intermediate product used to make tungsten metal, rose more than 200% in the first four months of the year, Reuters reported in April. Since then Chinese tungsten prices have fallen nearly 70% from their peak in seven months, back to late-November 2025 levels, the China Tungsten Industry Association said on 12 October, and some smelters have cut output. The spending side is growing: the White House has asked Congress for a record $1.5 trillion defense budget for 2027.
United States Tungsten is raising money from individual investors under Regulation Crowdfunding to bring back the Tungsten Queen mine. The company says the asset holds 1 million tons of minerals worth an estimated $665 million. The offer, with the offering circular, is below.
sponsored The Tungsten Queen |
Starting January 2027, a new mandate requires the U.S. military to source tungsten domestically, banning imports from China. Since the U.S. military relies on tungsten for everything from armor-piercing rounds to jet engines, they're racing to find a way of sourcing this critical mineral. This is a massive opportunity for United States Tungsten. They're working to revitalize the Tungsten Queen, once America's largest tungsten mine: a massive asset containing 1 million tons of minerals worth an estimated $665M. The White House just proposed raising the military budget to $1.5T next year. A bigger budget means more spending on the hardware that requires tungsten. As new laws require that money be spent on American-mined minerals first, United States Tungsten is positioned to become a supplier for one of the world's most reliable customers. Disclaimer: This is a paid advertisement for United States Tungsten Corp's Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.unitedstatestungsten.com |
What Is Scheduled
28 Oct | the Fed’s rate decision. Microsoft and Alphabet report. |
29 Oct | third-quarter GDP and September PCE prices. Amazon, Intel and Eli Lilly report. |
30 Oct | Tesla’s sworn answers to NHTSA are due. Exxon Mobil reports. |
3 Nov | the midterm elections. |
ad This unexpected shift could have major consequences for the war, energy markets, the economy, and your financial future. Watch the Briefing |
One Hundred Fifteen Dollars
$115 | Brent on Monday morning, up 75% in a year. Washington asked Kyiv to stop hitting Russian oil. Kyiv said no. The video at the top lays out what Kyiv wants next. |
Forget the hot picks — watch the refineries before you trade the headline. Because the best trade you’ll ever make is the loss you never took. Mike LeeDeals CatchersThanks for reading. See you tomorrow. |
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