‘After nearly destroying our planet, our families have become allies’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer toward destruction more so than ever in modern times. This transpired when an American reconnaissance aircraft found that Russian nuclear missile bases were being built in the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded a naval task force to enact a naval quarantine encircling Cuba. The next phase was nearly two weeks of extreme anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The threat remained clear. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic attacks and counterstrikes could have ensued, thrusting civilization toward total destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined repeatedly, through books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel element into the story. The series is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men who, for two tense weeks, grasped the fate of the planet within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What was Washington thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic of global relations.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to explore: "How can nations detest one another and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that people can be allies or else can become complete adversaries," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and now an author as well as attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over when countries have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality it is to fight."

A Precipice Towards Disaster

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals around the world could watch almost as it happened as it moved towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation came closer than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed our aircraft carriers and sunk our primary naval force. In turn, we would have responded with massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when many advisors in their governments was pushing for military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis through the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative narrative of events.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, which was a wonderful thing," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view would not be shared by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably balanced and well produced that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of the United States and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of hope.

"We are not the pioneers," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate because we connected immediately and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now allies, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Current Perils

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend