NATO fighter planes were scrambled today amid a Russian barrage of drones and missiles on civilian, energy and military sites in Ukraine.
Harrowing footage showed residents in Poltava screaming after a strike destroyed ordinary apartment blocks triggering fires amid the debris of smashed buildings.
The wave of attacks by Vladimir Putin - which led to power cuts in multiple regions - came soon after Donald Trump announced in the Oval Office that his administration was actively talking to Moscow.
'We are having very serious discussions about that war, trying to get it ended,' said the US president.
On whether he had spoken directly to Putin, Trump said: 'I don't want to say that.'
The massive strikes may be a sign that Putin has no intention of ending the war on Ukraine which approaches its three-year mark this month.
As Putin's steps up its air attacks on Ukraine , he was seen presenting a bouquet of white roses to Russia's leading churchman - Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill - on the 16th anniversary of his enthronement.
The dictator is seen as enraged by a succession of attacks by Ukraine on his oil refineries including the loss of key Ust-Luga port to export fuel.
Harrowing footage showed residents in Poltava screaming after a strike destroyed ordinary apartment blocks triggering fires amid the debris of smashed buildings
The wave of attacks by Vladimir Putin - which led to power cuts in multiple regions - came soon after Donald Trump announced he was actively talking to Moscow
As Putin's steps up its air attacks on Ukraine , he was seen presenting a bouquet of white roses to Russia 's leading churchman - Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill - on the 16th anniversary of his enthronement.
The scale of the attack led NATO to scramble Polish and allied warplanes on the alliance's eastern front.
Putin sent strategic nuclear-capable bomber aircraft including Tu-95s and Tu-22s in the attacks, unleashing Kh-22 missiles among others.
Warsaw's operation command said: 'Attention, due to the attack of the Russian Federation performing strikes on facilities located, among others, in the west of Ukraine, the operation of Polish and allied aviation in our airspace has begun.
The duty commander 'activated all available forces and means at his disposal,' said a statement.
NATO fighter planes were sent up while 'ground-based air defence and radio-location reconnaissance systems have reached a state of highest readiness.
'The steps taken are aimed at ensuring security in the areas bordering the threatened areas.'
The strikes in the morning hours on Saturday followed a Russian missile attack on the southern Black Sea port of Odesa the previous evening which damaged the city's historic centre.
'Russia's daily attacks on Ukraine are a signal that the aggressor will not stop committing its crimes,' Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram.
Ukrainian rescuers clearing rubble at a damaged residential building following a missile strike in Poltava
Firefighters clear the rubble and search for victims on the site a ruined apartment building following a Russian rocket attack in Poltava
'Last night and in the morning, Russia shelled Ukraine again: Odesa, Poltava, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia... The terrorist targets civilian infrastructure: residential buildings, educational institutions, cars.'
The ministry posted pictures on the Telegram messaging app showing the residential building with several top floors smashed and thick columns of smoke rising into the sky. Fire brigades and dozens of rescuers were going through the rubble.
The death toll from the strikes rose to six as the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky branded it as a 'terrorist crime'. Three were killed in Poltava, two in Sumy region and one in Kharkiv.
In Ukraine's second city Kharkiv, a drone crashed in the Kholodnohirskyi residential district, killing one woman and leaving five injured, said mayor Ihor Terekhov.
An ordinary apartment block was hit in Poltava with at least three people were killed and ten wounded as rescuers work amid fears of fatalities.
'Unfortunately, three people were killed. My condolences to the relatives,' said Zelensky.
'Each such terrorist act proves that we need more support in protecting against Russian terror.
'Every air defence system, every anti-missile is a lifesaver. It is very important that partners act, fulfil our agreements, and increase pressure on Russia.'
The massive strikes may be a sign that Putin (pictured) has no intention of ending the war on Ukraine which approaches its three-year mark this month.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (right) shakes hands with US president Donald Trump (left)
Emergency power outages were reported in the Dnepropetrovsk, Kirovograd, Poltava, Sumy and Kharkiv regions.
In Zaporizhzhia, Russia launched dozens of strikes, including at least 18 Shahed drones, damaging infrastructure, a multi-storey building, and private houses.
Earlier in an attack on the historic centre of Odesa, the tsarist-era Hotel Bristol was hit and damaged.
Explosions were recorded in the Kharkiv, Sumy, Dnepropetrovsk, Poltava, Kyiv and Odessa regions.
The Vasylkiv military airfield, 25 miles south of Kyiv, was targeted, according to some reports.
Head of Zelensky's office, Andriy Yermak, said: 'Poltava, Odesa, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia - attacks on residential buildings, on civilians, are typical tactics of the Russian army.
'They also even wipe out villages in their own Kursk region with people, shelling them with KAB [aerial bombs]….
'The true face of Russia is this. Murderers who have absolutely no respect for any leader in the world, or any other nation.
'There's only fear, which does not allow them to do the same in Europe. For now.'
