‘After almost annihilating our world, the relatives are friends’: a thrilling audio series from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the world came nearer toward ruin than at any other point in the contemporary era. This transpired when an American reconnaissance plane discovered the fact that Soviet nuclear missile bases were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to impose a maritime blockade around the island. What followed constituted nearly a fortnight of unbearable stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The danger was obvious. If Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a series of worldwide nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes would have followed, casting mankind into all-out destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented repeatedly, in volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought an unprecedented perspective into the story. It is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the men that, over two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin planning? What was the United States thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic of international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the show lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations detest one another to the point they go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or else can become total enemies," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the sheer folly involved to fight."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is striking about this event is that, since it transpired so publicly, people around the world could watch almost as it happened as it crept towards armageddon. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than what most people understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would've deployed a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated the aircraft carriers and destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them was pushing for military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, during those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva learned about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative version of events.

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

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that interpretation was not shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, partly, due to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of America and USSR would appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we got along immediately and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Finally, following almost 60 years since nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now friends, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to be able to grasp