WAVES of drone and missile attacks targeted Kiev on Thursday night and into this morning, in the largest aerial assault since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began more than three years ago.

The seven-hour onslaught wounded at least 23 people and inflicted severe damage across many districts of the capital. Blasts lit up the night sky and echoed across the city as air raid sirens wailed. The blue lights of emergency vehicles reflected off high-rise buildings and debris blocked city streets.

“It was a harsh, sleepless night,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Russia has been stepping up its long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities. Less than a week ago, Moscow’s forces launched what was then the largest aerial assault of the war. That strategy has coincided with a concerted Russian effort to break through parts of the roughly 620-mile front line, where Ukrainian troops are under severe pressure.

Some 550 drones and missiles were launched at targets across Ukraine during the night, Kiev’s air force said. The majority were Shahed drones, but Russia also launched 11 missiles in the attack.

Alya Shahlai, a 23-year-old Kiev wedding photographer, said her home had been destroyed in the attack.

“We were all in the [basement] shelter because it was so loud. Staying at home would have been suicidal,” she told reporters. “We went down 10 minutes before and then there was a loud explosion and the lights went out in the shelter. People were panicking.”

The attack on the Ukrainian capital began the same day as a phone call took place between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr Zelensky called the timing of the strikes a deliberate signal that Moscow has no intention of ending the war.

US-led international peace efforts have been fruitless so far. Recent direct peace talks have led only to sporadic exchanges of prisoners of war and fallen soldiers.

When asked if he had made any progress with Mr Putin on a deal to end the fighting in Ukraine, Mr Trump said: “No, I didn’t make any progress with him today at all.

“I’m not happy about that,” he said of Russia’s war in Ukraine. “I don’t think he’s looking to stop.”

According to presidential foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov, Mr Putin emphasised that Moscow would seek to achieve its goals in Ukraine and remove the “root causes” of the conflict.

“Russia will not back down from these goals,” Mr Ushakov told reporters after the call.