‘After nearly destroying the planet, our relatives have become allies’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, humanity came closer to annihilation than at any other point during recent history. This transpired after a US reconnaissance aircraft found that Russian nuclear weapon sites were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to enact a naval quarantine around the island. What followed was almost a fortnight of unbearable tension.

The Unthinkable Threat

The threat was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic attacks and counterstrikes would have followed, thrusting mankind toward all-out destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, through volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new perspective into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the leaders that, for 13 days, held the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What was the American side thinking?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do nations hate one another and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that people can be friends or have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the sheer folly involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals worldwide were able to observe nearly in real time while it moved towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of destruction came closer than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would have obliterated the aircraft carriers and destroyed America's largest and most important naval force. In turn, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to remain calm while engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements in their governments demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which presented a slightly different picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly wonderful or positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that perspective was not held by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot the known outcome. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most groundbreaking aspect remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR would appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I aren't the first," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America 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 are friends, something that is really great. Finally, after almost six decades since almost destroying the world, our lineages are now allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now are living in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp