‘After almost destroying our planet, our families have become friends’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, humanity veered closer to destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred when a US reconnaissance aircraft identified that Soviet atomic missile bases were under construction on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a naval blockade encircling Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly a fortnight of unbearable anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The peril was palpable. If President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction involving global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have followed, plunging humanity toward all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, through volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents an unprecedented element into this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives of the figures who, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Russians planning? What were the United States considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and an academic of international affairs.

In her view, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can individuals detest each other to the point they go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular it is that people can be friends or can become total enemies," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently an author and attorney. "We see this repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s remarkable about this event was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened while it moved towards armageddon. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and an invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would've destroyed our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our primary naval force. And, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in keep their heads while calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by the sense of hope.

A Different Perspective

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina being taught about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which presented a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly fine or positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not shared by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so balanced and expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most groundbreaking thing is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of the United States and the USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of hope.

"Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate because we got along immediately and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages have become friends, so I think global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Present Dangers

Or is it? One reason why this series feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn