Following nearly destroying our planet, our relatives have become allies’: a thrilling audio series from John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer toward destruction more so than ever during modern times. This occurred following the discovery that an American reconnaissance aircraft discovered the fact that Russian nuclear weapon bases were being assembled on the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a maritime blockade around the island. The next phase constituted almost 14 days filled with extreme tension.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril was clear. If President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a cascade of global atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes might have followed, plunging mankind into all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined repeatedly, through books, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces an unprecedented dimension to this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, over 13 days, held the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What was the Soviet side planning? What were Washington thinking?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and an academic specializing in international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast is its attempt to objectively ask: "How can individuals hate each other to the point they go against one another?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that humans can be allies or can become total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and now a writer as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over when countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink of Catastrophe

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people worldwide could watch nearly as it happened as it crept closer to catastrophe. Even so, the risk of destruction was more imminent than what most people understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would've launched a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would have obliterated the naval vessels as well as sunk our largest and most important fleet. And, 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 Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy when many advisors around them were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the missiles in the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva being taught about it via the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system we were told that everything was always fine and positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start the war, seen as a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, though, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot the known outcome. This is, partly, thanks to the participation of historians. But, really, the most significant thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of America and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate since we got along immediately and we’re friends, which is really great. Ultimately, following almost six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Current Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend