The PVV leader said that he understands Russia’s feeling of being surrounded by the advancing NATO. “I am a big fan of NATO and the Americans, but here Russia has a point.”
Wilders said he needed to be a counterweight to the “hysterical Russophobia” which exists in parts of the Netherlands.
The popular politican said he has already been in talks with the Russian ambassador in The Hague about a potential programme for his trip.
“Russia is not an enemy and we should not turn it into one,” he said. Moreover, Russia is an important ally in the war on terrorism and mass African immigration, he told the magazine.
The Netherlands can learn a lot from Russia about patriotism, he said. Not everything Russia does is good, according to Wilders, but he sees interests and similarities between Russia and the Netherlands.
In particular, Wilders said he wants to visit the Russian parliament to “show that we have patriots here as well”.
However, he made it clear that he would never accept loans from the Russians. “No rubles roll through the corridors of the PVV.”
Last week Dutch home affairs minister Kajsa Ollongren warned about Russian attempts to “influence public opinion and spread fake news” in the Netherlands.