Sen. John Kennedy (R., La.) on Monday compared the Russian government's political philosophy – or lack thereof – to that of the Mafia.
"People say, well, what kind of political system do they have? They don't have-- it's all about Putin. They don't have a political philosophy. I mean, what's the political philosophy of the Mafia? You know? There is none," Kennedy told CNN host Kate Bolduan. "It's all about money and power, and there's no free press."
Kennedy was part of a group of Republican senators who met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow last week. The purpose of the meeting was to improve the relationship between the two countries.
Kennedy said he attended the meeting to deliver several messages to Lavrov.
"Number one, stop screwing with American elections," Kennedy said. "Number two, get out of Eastern Ukraine and let them self-determine. Number three, get out of Crimea and let Crimea self-determine. Number four, stop screwing around in Syria and help us settle the mess. And number five, do not allow Iran to get a foothold in southern Syria, because if you do that, there's going to be another war."
Kennedy called the meeting "tough" and said Lavrov is a "bully."
"The foreign minister meeting was probably the toughest. We exchanged words. He's a bully. He impressed me as the sort of guy who started out in the world as a smartass and worked his way up. And it was a pretty tough meeting. But I think our message was delivered," Kennedy said.
This meeting took place ahead of the upcoming summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The summit is scheduled for July 16 and will take place in Helsinki, Finland.
Bolduan asked the senator if he thought Russia would refrain from interfering in future elections.
"I really don't know. But I told them, and my colleagues did as well ... 'the Congress is going to double down on sanctions. And you're not going to like it,'" Kennedy responded.
"What did he say to you? I assume the reaction was, 'we didn't do it,' because that's when we've heard publicly," Bolduan said.
"Well, it got testy at times. They, of course, deny everything. And I expected them to," Kennedy said. "Look, the last time that the Russian government embraced Western values and democracy was never. We're not going to convert their political leadership. We're going to have to contain them. And the only way to contain them, you don't have to be ugly about it, but you've got to be very, very firm."
Kennedy also warned Russia not to aid the Iranians in securing a foothold in Syria.
"The most immediate threat, though, to world peace, is frankly in Syria," Kennedy said. "If Russia keeps playing footsie with the Iranians and lets them establish a foothold in southern Syria, the Israelis are going to knock the hell out of them. And that's just a fact."