Kennedy on European sanctions against Iran: “Make sure that the world understands that these sanctions are real”

Watch Kennedy's comments here.

WASHINGTON - Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) delivered the following remarks on the U.S. Senate floor:

"We haven't heard much about Iran lately. Iran has been busy, though. Just recently, Australia expelled Iran's ambassador, and they designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is part of Iran, as a terrorist organization.

"Why is that? Because people connected with Iran firebombed a Melbourne synagogue, and then, a few months later, they struck a kosher deli in Sydney, Australia. Iran is still there, and it is still spreading terrorism.

"Iran has also been in the news just recently. The United Kingdom and France and Germany have announced that they are going to trigger snapback sanctions on Iran. What do I mean by that?

"You will recall that, in 2015, President Obama made a deal with Iran. We called it the JCPOA. And the JCPOA just said to Iran: If you will stop moving toward a nuclear weapon, we-meaning the United States of America and the other countries that are part of the United Nations-will remove the sanctions that we had placed on Iran for trying to develop a nuclear weapon. So, Iran said: 'Pinky promise, we will stop building a nuclear weapon. You remove the sanctions.'

"President Obama agreed. He was naive. We removed the sanctions. The United Nations removed the sanctions. The United Kingdom, Germany, and France removed the sanctions. And, of course, the Ayatollah and Iran continued to develop a weapon.

"Just because we have destroyed- 'we' meaning the United States of America-many of Iran's facilities to make that weapon does not mean that the issue has been resolved. Iran has refused to come to the table, even still, to negotiate a settlement, a new JCPOA.

"And as a result-and I am very proud of them-the United Kingdom and Germany and France have said: 'OK. We are going to reimplement those sanctions that we agreed to take off of Iran when they signed the first nuclear deal, which Iran welched on almost immediately.' And, again, I want to thank our friends in Europe. They supposedly are going to reimplement those sanctions at the end of this month, and I hope they do.

"Of course, my preference would be to have Iran come to the table again before then and sit down with the U.S. and other members of the United Nations and resolve this issue of them having a nuclear weapon, but I don't expect that to happen.

"So, I know I have said it, but I want to say it again: Thank you, United Kingdom and Germany and France, for doing this, but we need to talk about the rest of the story.

"The sanctions, which will be on Iranian banking, on Iranian shipping, oil, and arms are only part of the story. These are U.N. sanctions. But just because the sanctions have been brought back on Iran, that doesn't mean that they will be enforced.

"Now, normally these are United Nations sanctions on shipping and banking and oil and arms, so normally there would be a United Nations committee to enforce the sanctions. I hope there is, but I doubt it because I think that Russia and China are going to block a United Nations committee to enforce the sanctions.

"What is my point? My point is that just because Europe and, of course, the United States of America have agreed to reimpose those sanctions, we have still got to enforce them. We have still got to enforce them. And the United States needs to take the lead on doing that.

"And we need to, joining with the United Kingdom and with Germany and with France, we need to make sure that the world understands that these sanctions are real and that we, as part of the West, are going to enforce them.

"This is important. I don't want to see this get lost in our discussion about the importance of the Ukraine situation and other issues of national security. I don't want this to get lost.

"What you allow is what will continue. What you allow is what will continue. And unless you have an opium habit, you know that is just a principle we all have to learn the hard way.

"So, I am hoping that the president and our friends in Europe will take the lead and not only snap back these sanctions but then enforce them. And unfortunately-I wish we didn't have to do it because I feel for the Iranian people. I don't feel any sympathy for the Ayatollah. We are just going to have to choke him to death economically."

Watch Kennedy's speech here.