Rep. Steve King (R-IA) was in The Netherlands on Wednesday meeting with far-right Parliamentarian and anti-Muslim figure Geert Wilders.
Wilders, who heads the anti-immigrant Party for Freedom (PVV), tweeted a post-meeting photo with participants King and Dr. Frauke Petry, who co-heads the German far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD).
“Just had an excellent meeting with @FraukePetry and @SteveKingIA in The Hague,” the tweet read.
King then retweeted the photo, calling the meeting “Excellent and likely historic!”
This is not the first time King has associated with Wilders. In April 2015, King and his colleague Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) invited the Dutch politician to Washington, D.C., where they organized a short speaking circuit for him.
While in the States, Wilders claimed “western civilization” – particularly Christianity and Judaism – “is under attack” from Islam and called for a stop to “mass immigration to the West from Islamic countries.”
He added: “The less Islam, the better”
It is unclear what the meeting between King and the European far-right figures entailed. However, as Salon puts it, Europe’s far-right parties have been given a “shot of adrenaline” after the results of Britain’s referendum to leave the European Union.
Wilders is known for his disdain and inflammatory comments about Islam. He is currently on trial for allegedly inciting hatred after leading supporters in an anti-Moroccan immigrant chant during a rally in 2014, a spectacle some have hyperbolically claimed was akin to Nazi Propaganda Minister Josef Goebbels’ famous 1943 speech.
The event even led to some of Wilders’ own party members to deflect. Some of those who continue to stand by him include staunch anti-Muslim figures – and apparently Steve King.
Wilders claims he plans to attend the Republican National Convention in July, saying he is “encouraged” by presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
“Whether you like him or not, I believe the issue of Islam should be number one on the political agenda,” Wilders told Buzzfeed, “[and] he’s (Trump) the one person at least in America who is making this issue.”