"Trump is not a rational leader, we can not believe what he says"

He is German, he comes to Portugal to ask us to say "no" to nuclear weapons and promises not to remain silent until his arguments are heard. At the head of the announced Boom, this eco-friendly and environmentally friendly electronic music festival, to be held in Idanha-a-Nova from July 2 to 29, Leo Hoffmann- Axthelm, 29, (If people know that their government is boycotting an agreement to end nuclear weapons, they will certainly not remain silent.)

According to him, give carte blanche to those who are in possession of something that puts us all in danger is absolutely crazy – and, again, the hope of shaking this state of affairs is put on youth. Do we think for a moment: to launch a revolution of thought in a music festival? Shortly after, another voice echoed in our consciousness and replied: Why not? If the new generation has already shown strength in the case of possession of weapons, as we saw after the shootings in American high schools, may be a good bet.

Still have questions about this? Now let's look at the topic: nuclear weapons are the most dangerous on the face of the earth. Entire cities can be destroyed, killing thousands of people, with adverse effects on the environment and devastating consequences for future generations. They were used only twice in a war scenario (in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, World War II), but today it is estimated that there are 15,000 around the world. In the meantime, two thousand trials will have been conducted. In half of them he is suspected, there have been accidents. Even when we already know that current nuclear weapons are hundreds of times more dangerous to health than those that were abandoned in 1945. In addition, 1800 of the weapons that exist today are in a state of alert . Which means that they can be released in 15 minutes. The agreement to come to an end has proved difficult, largely because of NATO's position – and Portugal, as a member of NATO, does not have a great deal of experience. help not. A process of half a century: It is July 1, 1968 that the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was signed

How did you get involved in the International Campaign for the abolition of nuclear weapons? )?

He participated in the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) conference as a student, conducting interviews with ambassadors to raise awareness, from 2009 to 2012. At that time, he was a young diplomat in the Republic of Nauru, small An island nation of the Pacific became a point of reference for security, disarmament, the arms trade treaty … When I returned to Berlin, he told me It seemed obvious that the current processes of nuclear disarmament were completely dysfunctional and relentless. It was then that I contacted ICAN to set up an office in Berlin. First, it was a small space in my living room and then I enlarged it. From then on, he worked on all fronts: lobbying political institutions, meetings with other humanitarian and development organizations, organizing conferences … When I arrived in Brussels at the end of 2014, I became an ICAN EU [19659002] What are your biggest concerns?

One can think of several arguments, but what worries me the most is the error. We are talking about old tools, an already old technology, which in many cases is hidden. We know that there have been about a thousand accidents in trials that have occurred since the 1970s and whose effects have been hidden. We may not be able to reduce the risk to zero, but we should not rest until this type of weaponry is not considered illegal everywhere.

Recently, we have even used the argument that this type of weaponry prevents anyone from using it. Why does it not rest on you?

This is misleading. Nobody can believe it. Billions of dollars are spent; there are countries that are preparing to invest even more in this type of weapon. Others can pursue them. If we do not do anything to stop it, if we do not declare it unacceptable, we become accomplices.

Only the naive believe that nothing bad can happen …

That. The world is a dangerous place. It was very much in the minds of people during the Cold War. Then it was thought that this scenario of returning nuclear weapons to the table was impossible. Since the late 1980s, with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet bloc, it has become an abstract concept. After all, as you can see, this is not the case.

The treaty has already been signed by 120 countries, but it was not enough to convince others. Why?

The biggest obstacle is NATO: its 29 members have not yet signed, largely under American influence, the strongest member of this alliance. And others fear that when they go against him, then they can not be defended. This is the case of Portugal, which also boycotted the negotiations at the UN to be a member of the organization. But Trump is not a rational leader, we can not believe what he says.

Much has also been said about the risk that constitutes the arsenal of North Korea. Recently, Kim Jong-un invited journalists to prove, in loco, the end of his plant. What did it look like?

It was great, but I think we should not fix the problem. As long as there are people and countries who claim to need nuclear weapons to feel safe, it is very unlikely that North Korea will reach another conclusion.

The summit with Trump also finally achieved – but without great results. How do you interpret it?

Everything is better than threatening to kill millions of innocent civilians. Diplomacy is always better than confrontation. But this is not a substantial progress. None of North Korea's commitments is new and they are extremely vague. This is not the way to deal with disarmament: it is rather through legally binding treaties and technical verification procedures to increase confidence. If Trump and Kim take nuclear disarmament seriously, they would accept transparent, verifiable and timely measures to dismantle their arsenals.

This event was about the same time as half a dozen American military men holding stocks accepted the consumption of LSD and other illicit drugs. Does the revelation surprise you?

Several years ago, several studies had already indicated that these employees were more predisposed to drug use and other events, such as episodes of family violence, in many cases similar to -traumatic. I interpret this as a clear symptom that most people who handle nuclear weapons in their daily lives understand far better than politicians how foolish it would be to use them. This also shows that accidents are very likely. From the moment the probability of an accident is not 0%, it is still irresponsible to continue with this policy.

Is this the reason you come to Portugal? To create a critical mass?

To our knowledge, Portugal has a government concerned with social and environmental issues. We obviously hope that if everyone realizes that he has boycotted these negotiations, do not accept it. I think people will be shocked when they realize the impact of all this.

Are there any risks that even this treaty will not be implemented? We have seen this happen with environmental treaties, for example …

So let's give in … No, we are talking about arming that can blow up that thing. We may not be able to reduce everything to zero, but the less nuclear we have, the less risk we run. We have no doubt about it.

It sometimes seems like everyone is waiting for the other to take the first step.

Ninety percent of the world's nuclear weapons are in the hands of Russia and, above all, the United States. After what happened at Chernobyl, it is hard to believe that the Russians want to take this risk. Those with more weapons must take the first step – or the other countries will never do it. They will continue to think: if they need it to feel safe, then we will not stop our program either.

You must give the example, is not it?

Of course. This is the only way to stay on the bright side of the story. We hope that Portugal exerts this pressure and that it can help persuade NATO members to adhere to this treaty. Or at least say that you have a voice and that these weapons are not legitimate. People need to know that there is an option. That's what we're betting on. We know that there will always be conflicts and that they will be able to go to war.

Last year, your efforts were rewarded by the Nobel Peace Prize.

It has been very important that all the work we have been doing for five years is internationally recognized, but we can not stop now. There is still a lot to do. It's a process. It can take ten, 20 years. It is not worth giving up. We do not want people to think of building bunkers to protect themselves, as they did during the Cold War. We want to live without nuclear power. The award gave us a voice and recognized us as partners at a bargaining table. There are more people paying attention to us. It is now easier, for example, to access the press. People know that they do not have to accept Trump's policy. That's why we are fighting.

"Humor, horror and hope." How did your slogan become a winner?

Initially, we put a lot of effort into showing the horror that can be expected from the use of nuclear weapons. At the same time, we used a bit of humor, ironically questioning, to allow us to think of another world that would suit us. Because that's the only way to keep hope. Mixing everything up is a known technique of cinema. And he is.

And are you optimistic about this mission in Portugal? It is inevitable that people will say no to nuclear weapons. History proves it. Thirty years ago, a popular march opposed the installation of a factory. Your Government emphasizes today that the agreement with Iran – that Donald Trump, the US President, has torn up, despite the lifting of international sanctions against Iran in exchange for the fact Tehran's commitment to its peaceful nuclear program – is to maintain. We do not expect anything else.