Ukrainian officials say Russia used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and Iskander/KN-23 missiles to carry out the attack.
At least one person has been killed and seven injured after a Russian missile strike hit the Ukrainian capital.
The attack on Friday morning also destroyed buildings in Kyiv and set fires in other areas, according to the head of the Kyiv military administration, Serhiy Popko.
Russia fired eight missiles at Kyiv, Popko said, adding that it used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and Iskander/KN-23 missiles to do so.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defenses were operating following a missile attack that Russia said it had “retaliated against” in Ukraine this week using western missiles on a chemical plant in southern Russia.
“In response to the actions of the Kyiv government, with the support of the Western administration, a combined strike with long-range weapons was launched today,” the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Ukrainian media reports, citing witnesses on the ground, said that a large explosion was heard in Kyiv and smoke could be seen rising from one side of the city.
“Ballistic missiles from the north!” The Ukrainian military warned in a Telegram message.
The Kyiv Independent newspaper reported that several explosions occurred around 7am (05:00 GMT). It quoted Klitschko's statement that “several cars were burning in Holosiivskyi district of the city due to the debris that fell from the missile”.
Fires also broke out in Solomianskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Kyiv, as well as at a construction site in Dnipro region.
The mayor of the city said at least seven people were injured, four of whom were taken to hospital.
Before the Ukrainian warplanes, the Ukrainian military warned that a Russian MiG-31 jet capable of firing hypersonic missiles had taken off from a Russian airfield, the Kyiv Independent reported.
Later on Friday, the Ukrainian Air Force said it had shot down five missiles and 40 drones, while another 20 drones failed to meet their targets.
Thursday, the end of the year media conferenceRussian President Vladimir Putin has decided to engage in a high-tech competition with Kyiv and said he will test his claims that Russia's new hypersonic ballistic missiles will not protect airspace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the provocations, calling Putin's group “terrorists”.
Al Jazeera's Defense Editor Alex Gatopoulos, from the Ukrainian city of Odesa, said the Russian attack was a direct result of two presidents trading barbs.
“Putin said we can pass and we can, and he showed today that he can,” Gatopoulos said.
Air raid warnings were issued twice a night in Kyiv due to drone attacks. City officials said air defense intercepted all the drones and debris fell in Desniaskyi district.
In southern Ukraine, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said Ukrainian troops chased Russian terrorist groups overnight as they tried to advance to the city of Kherson, the Kyiv Independent reported.
Prokudin said that the Russian military is targeting areas with the most important weapons. One person was killed, and at least nine others were injured, according to local government officials cited by the reporter.
The Russian military has been carrying out attacks in the southern region of Ukraine to gain access to the islands on the Dnipro River.