Following nearly annihilating our planet, the relatives have become allies’: the thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world edged closer toward annihilation than at any other point during modern times. This occurred following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified that Russian nuclear missile installations were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval quarantine encircling Cuba. What followed constituted almost 14 days of extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Threat

The peril remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against their enemy, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, plunging humanity into all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, through volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces a novel element into this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the leaders that, over 13 days, held the fate of the world in their hands.

"What was the Russians considering? What were the United States considering?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do people detest each other to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable it is that humans can be allies or have the potential to be total adversaries," remarks Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now an author and attorney. "We see this over and over when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality involved to engage in warfare."

The Precipice of Disaster

What’s notable regarding this event was that, because it transpired so publicly, citizens globally were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept towards catastrophe. Even so, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than what most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted a military strike followed by a ground invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, there is no question the Russians on the ground would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, which would have obliterated our aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the missiles in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew American similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, and Nina being taught about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative version of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, 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 constantly wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, as it was a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, which was a positive thing," she continues. Later on, however, that interpretation was not shared by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is remarkably balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most significant thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "After 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 were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is a shame because we got along immediately and we’re friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, following nearly 60 years of almost destroying the world, our families have become friends, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Perils

Or is it? One reason why this series feels so necessary is because we once again are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn