‘After nearly annihilating the planet, the families have become allies’: a thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the world edged closer to annihilation more so than ever during the contemporary era. This transpired after an American reconnaissance aircraft found that Russian atomic weapon installations were being assembled on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. In response, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was nearly a fortnight filled with extreme tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril was clear. If Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against the other side, a series involving global nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging mankind toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a novel perspective into this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men that, over two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side considering? What was Washington planning?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic of international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "How can people detest one another to the point they go against one another?"

"I am acutely aware how profound the fact that humans can be allies or else have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to the late president and currently an author and lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink of Catastrophe

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired so publicly, individuals globally could watch almost in real time as it edged towards armageddon. Even so, the danger of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for an airstrike followed by an invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would've sunk our aircraft carriers and destroyed our primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to remain calm while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the missiles from the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his similar weapons based in Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, matched by a feeling of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of events.

"You said your father remembers it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly fine or sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that view was not shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up America."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing is the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of America and the USSR would appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and we’re friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, after nearly 60 years since almost destroying the world, our families are now allies, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why this series seems so urgent is because we once again are living living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to grasp