In 1917, he hailed the Russian Revolution as the beginning of that global revolution. In June that year on medical advice he moved to Bern, Switzerland. Here he was in contact with a group of Russian revolutionary exiles who shared news of the revolution with him. Following the Bolshevik seizure of power also enabled him to send a letter to Vladimir Lenin wishing him luck and offering him help (23 December 1917). Lenin's two replies arrived in February 1918. One wished him well with his health, the second requested him to find a some socialist experts, whether in Holland or Switzerland who could help in the restructuring of the banking system and setting up a state trading company. Gorter replied that month in a letter explaining that he had such people, but also raised political concerns over the direction of the Russian Revolution: Lenin had sanctioned the granting of concessions to the peasantry as regards establishing small scale agricultural production through land reform, whereas Gorter saw Communist Revolution in Western Europe, particularly in German and England arising from the seizure of power by the industrial working class, and saw extending property rights to small peasant businesses as undermining this. He also thought that the right to national self-determination should and could only be realised in Western Europe as part of a socialist revolution. In September 1918, he wrote to Lenin again concerning the failure of the Dutch Social-Democratic Party to oppose the imperialism of America, France and Britain with the same vigour they opposed German imperialism. He implored Lenin to write something in support of this view. Lenin responded sending a copy of "State and Revolution", which Gorter offered to translate. Gorter also complained that the 4 members of parliament elected by the had voted in favour of relief aid from the United States, and thus were siding with an imperialist faction.