‘After almost destroying our planet, the relatives have become friends’: the thrilling podcast from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the world came nearer to destruction more so than ever in recent history. This transpired after an American reconnaissance plane found the fact that Russian nuclear missile bases were under construction on Cuba, a mere 100 miles from American soil. In response, U.S. President JFK ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime blockade around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly a fortnight filled with extreme stress.

The Unthinkable Danger

The threat remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a cascade of worldwide nuclear attacks and counterstrikes would have ensued, thrusting civilization toward all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, in books, films, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a completely new element into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives of the figures that, for two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What was the Russians planning? What were Washington thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and a professor specializing in global relations.

In her view, the strength of the show is its attempt to question: "Why do nations detest each other and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else have the potential to be complete enemies," remarks Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now a writer and attorney. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating the sheer folly it is to fight."

A Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens globally were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept closer to armageddon. Even so, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would have obliterated our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our primary fleet. And, we would have responded with massive retaliation which would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to remain calm while engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those two weeks in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about the crisis via the Soviet education system, which portrayed a slightly different picture of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are always fine and positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion for the USSR, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided the war, which was a positive thing," she continues. Subsequently, though, that view would not be held by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably balanced and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking thing remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of America and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. That these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of progress.

"Max and I are not the first," notes 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."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we got along really well and we are friends, which is really great. Ultimately, following almost 60 years of almost destroying the world, our lineages are now friends, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels with Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why The Bomb seems so urgent is that we once again find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn