Following almost destroying our world, the families have become allies’: a thrilling podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the planet veered closer to ruin than at any other point in recent history. This occurred when a US reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Soviet atomic missile sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime blockade around the island. The ensuing period was nearly 14 days of extreme stress.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a cascade involving worldwide atomic strikes and counterstrikes might have followed, plunging civilization toward total destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, in books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a completely new perspective to the story. The series is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the men that, over two tense weeks, controlled the fate of the world in their hands.

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

In her view, the beauty of the podcast is its endeavor to explore: "Why do individuals detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be allies or else can become complete adversaries," states Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "We see this repeatedly when nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice of Disaster

What is striking about this event is that, because it transpired so publicly, people around the world were able to observe nearly in real time while it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the danger of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers and destroyed our largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded through massive retaliation which would have eradicated all life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them was pushing for military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by a feeling of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different picture of events.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly wonderful or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was different. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Later on, though, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

An Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so balanced and expertly crafted that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to the participation of renowned scholars. But, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable for descendants of the leaders of America and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and we’re friends, something that is wonderful. Ultimately, following almost 60 years since almost destroying the world, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Current Perils

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp