Following nearly destroying the planet, the relatives are friends’: a thrilling podcast from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the world came closer toward destruction than at any other point during modern times. This occurred after an American surveillance plane identified the fact that Russian nuclear missile sites were under construction in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval blockade encircling the island. The next phase was nearly 14 days filled with unbearable stress.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained clear. Should Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of worldwide nuclear strikes and counterstrikes could have followed, thrusting mankind toward all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined repeatedly, in volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought an unprecedented dimension into this historical narrative. The series is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the leaders who, for 13 days, controlled the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side thinking? What were the United States considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the show is its attempt to question: "How can individuals detest each other to the point they go against one another?"

"It struck me how profound it is that individuals can be allies or else can become total adversaries," adds Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to the late president and now a writer and attorney. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What’s remarkable about this event is that, because it transpired so publicly, people around the world could watch nearly as it happened as it edged towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation came closer than anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces stationed there would have deployed a nuclear warhead at the American ships, and that would have sunk our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded through massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint while calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements around them demanded military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles from the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American missiles based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by the sense of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks in October, the anxiety was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva learned about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that interpretation would not be held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so balanced and expertly crafted that Nina quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking thing remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the first," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate because we connected immediately and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly six decades since nearly annihilating the world, our families have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Echoes and Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is that we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend