In another tense and sleepless night for Kyiv residents, with many of them dashing in the dark with children and blankets to the protection of subway stations, at least 19 people were wounded, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv Regional Administration.
The night was punctuated with the chilling whine of approaching drones that slammed into residential areas, exploded and sent balls of orange flames into the dark during the 10-hour barrage.
Russia fired 397 Shahed and decoy drones as well as cruise and ballistic missiles at Kyiv and five other regions overnight, authorities said on Thursday.
"This is a clear escalation of Russian terror: hundreds of Shahed drones every night, constant missile strikes, massive attacks on Ukrainian cities," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a Telegram post.
Two rounds of direct peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations have yielded no progress on stopping the fighting.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Thursday there was no date for a possible third round of negotiations.
Russia has recently sought to overwhelm Ukraine's air defences with major attacks that include increasing numbers of decoy drones.
The previous night, it fired more than 700 attack and decoy drones, topping previous nightly barrages for the third time in two weeks.
"The continued increase in the size of strike packages is likely intended to support Russian efforts to degrade Ukrainian morale in the face of constant Russian aggression," the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said.
In tandem with the bombardments, Russia's army has started a new drive to break through parts of the 1000km front line, where short-handed Ukrainian forces are under heavy strain at what could prove to be a pivotal period of the war.
The pressure has caused alarm among Ukrainian officials, who are uncertain about continuing vital military aid from the United States and US President Donald Trump's policy towards Russia.
"Partners need to be faster with investments in weapons production and technology development," Zelenskiy said on Thursday.
"We need to be faster with sanctions and put pressure on Russia so that it feels the consequences of its terror."
More people are seeking shelter during attacks, spending nights in metro stations and underground car parks, with one Kyiv subway station worker saying more than 1000 people, including 70 children, took refuge there.
Russia routinely fires more drones in a night than in a whole month a year ago, and analysts say the drone barrages are unlikely to let up.
Russia is now producing more and better drones, including some using artificial intelligence technology, according to the Atlantic Council.
Its factories were manufacturing more than 5000 drones a month, the Washington-based think tank said this week.
Ukraine urgently needs more interceptor drones to take down Russia's Shaheds as well as Patriot missile systems to counter Russian missiles.
The US has resumed deliveries of certain weapons, including 155mm munitions and precision-guided rockets known as GMLRS, two US officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity so that they could provide details that had not been announced publicly.
It's unclear exactly when the weapons started moving.
Ukraine has also invested in drones, developing its own long-range weapons that can hit Russian soil.
Russia's defence ministry said it shot down 14 Ukrainian drones overnight.
Two people in the Belgorod region were injured by falling debris, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
