‘After nearly destroying the planet, the families are allies’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity veered nearer to annihilation than at any other point in recent history. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance plane found that Soviet atomic missile sites were being assembled on the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the United States. In response, President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a maritime quarantine encircling Cuba. What followed was almost 14 days filled with extreme anxiety.

The Unthinkable Threat

The peril was obvious. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a cascade involving global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes would have ensued, plunging humanity toward total ruination.

The October crisis has been examined repeatedly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a novel element to this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the men who, for two tense weeks, controlled the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin thinking? What was the American side considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations detest each other to the point they confront each other?"

"It struck me how spectacular the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or can become total enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now an author as well as lawyer. "We see this repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s striking about this event is that, because it transpired so publicly, individuals around the world could watch almost as it happened while it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, which would've obliterated the aircraft carriers and destroyed our primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, they managed to remain calm and calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements in their governments demanded action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles based in Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Nina being taught about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which painted a slightly different narrative of events.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system we were told that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided the war, which was a wonderful thing," she continues. Later on, however, that interpretation would not be shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably balanced and expertly crafted that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most significant thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, following nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now friends, suggesting the world is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Dangers

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is that we now are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend