Sen. John Kennedy John Neely KennedyMORE on Monday said during a recent trip to Russia that he called the country's foreign minister a “smart-ass” and demanded that Moscow “stop screwing with American elections."

The Louisiana Republican told CNN he went to Russia "to deliver a message. I delivered that to the foreign minister, to the speaker of the house, and to a number of their senators.”

Kennedy went on to explain what he claimed transpired during the visit.

ADVERTISEMENT

“This is what I said: No. 1, stop screwing with American elections,” Kennedy said. “No. 2, get out of eastern Ukraine and let them self-determine. No. 3, get out of Crimea and let Crimea self-determine. No. 4, stop screwing around in Syria and help us settle the mess. And No. 5, do not allow Iran to get a foothold in southern Syria. Because if you do that, there’s going to be another war.”

Kennedy also said that the “toughest part” of his trip was his meeting with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

“We exchanged words — he’s a bully. He impressed me as the sort of guy who started out in the world as a smart-ass and worked his way up,” he said. “And it was a pretty tough meeting. But I think our message was delivered. "

Kennedy also added that he delivered a warning to Lavrov that Congress will “double down on sanctions” if the Kremlin interferes with the midterm elections this November.

President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE is scheduled to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Finland on July 16.