The 2026 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) ended without a consensus outcome, extending a period of deadlock that has now lasted more than sixteen years. Yet the central challenge facing the treaty may not be the failure of the treaty itself, but a gradual erosion of confidence in the processes that allow states to manage uncertainty and sustain cooperation.

Drawing on the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, Leonardo Bandarra reflects on the role of trust, uncertainty, and verification in nuclear politics. At a time of renewed geopolitical tensions, nuclear modernisation, and persistent disagreements over disarmament, the article asks what happens when confidence in multilateral frameworks begins to erode—and what can be done to strengthen it.

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