Following almost annihilating our world, our relatives are friends’: a thrilling podcast featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, the world edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point in recent history. This transpired after an American surveillance aircraft found the fact that Russian atomic weapon installations were being assembled in Cuba, less than 100 miles from the US mainland. In response, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The next phase was almost two weeks filled with extreme stress.

An Unthinkable Danger

The danger remained obvious. If Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, casting civilization toward all-out destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered endlessly, in books, movies, and television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a novel element to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives of the men who, for two tense weeks, grasped the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What were the American side considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and a professor of global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the show is its endeavor to question: "Why do people detest one another and confront one another?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or can become complete adversaries," remarks Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author and attorney. "We see this over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it unfolded so publicly, people worldwide could watch almost in real time while it moved towards armageddon. Even so, the risk of destruction came closer than what anybody understood at the time.

"Almost all officials in the White House wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians on the ground would have launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've destroyed our naval vessels and destroyed America's primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who managed to exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when many advisors around them demanded action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Nina being taught about it via the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative version of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine and positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, which was a wonderful thing," she adds. Later on, however, that interpretation was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is so balanced and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, really, the most groundbreaking thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of America and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we got along really well and we’re friends, something that is wonderful. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our families have become friends, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Current Perils

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn