Russia receives ballistic missiles from Iran, according to sources.

 According to two people familiar with the intelligence, Iran has completed the delivery of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use in the conflict with Ukraine. US and Western officials had been warning for almost a year that this delivery was coming.

The precise delivery date of the missiles is unknown, but their transfer coincides with Russia stepping up drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities and preparing for massive Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure this winter. At a gathering of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Germany

The missile delivery from Iran was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

"Any transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles to Russia would represent a dramatic escalation in Iran's support" for the Kremlin in its invasion of Ukraine, an official from the National Security Council, Sean Savett, told CNN in a statement. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we have been warning of the growing security alliance between Russia and Iran, so we are concerned by these reports. "Together, we are prepared to deliver significant consequences, as we and our partners made clear at the G7 and NATO summits this summer," Savett stated.

Iran's backing of Russia has significantly increased with the delivery of ballistic missiles. According to CNN, Iran has already given Russia hundreds of drones that it has used in its conflict with Ukraine. Russia has also been constructing a drone manufacturing facility in Iran.

In a statement to CNN, Iran's Permanent Mission to the UN denied that the transfer had taken place.

Iran continues to hold the same stance regarding the situation in Ukraine. Iran believes that giving military support to the warring parties is inhumane because it increases the number of casualties, destroys infrastructure, and distances the parties from ceasefire talks. Therefore, Iran not only forgoes taking such actions on its own, but it also urges other nations to stop arming the opposing parties to the conflict," the statement read.

According to sources who previously spoke with CNN, Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu visited Iran in September of last year to see the Ababil close-range ballistic missile systems owned by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This visit marked the start of Russian negotiations to purchase the missiles from Iran.

An official told CNN in January that "this event marked the first public display of ballistic missiles to a senior Russian official visiting Iran since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war."

In a forceful joint statement released in March, the G7 warned that if Iran proceeds with delivering ballistic missiles to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine, the international community would respond with "new and significant measures against Iran."

Ballistic missiles and missile support systems were brought to a training area inside Iran by the IRGC in December of last year as a showpiece for visiting Russian delegations. This was a clear indication that Russia intended to buy the systems from Iran.

North Korea is also a supplier of missiles and missile parts to Russia, CNN has previously reported. According to officials, Moscow is currently embarking on its most ambitious expansion in military manufacturing since the Soviet era, thanks in large part to China's assistance in building up Russia's defense industrial base. China has supplied Russia with copious amounts of machine tools, drone and turbojet engines, and cruise missile technology.