Following nearly destroying our world, the relatives are friends’: the thrilling podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world came nearer toward destruction than at any other point during modern times. This happened after a US reconnaissance plane identified the fact that Russian nuclear weapon bases were being assembled on Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from American soil. In response, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around Cuba. What followed was nearly 14 days of unbearable tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The threat was clear. Should Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a series of global atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, casting civilization toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented repeatedly, in volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a completely new element to the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures that, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side planning? What was the American side planning?" asks Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor of international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to question: "How can individuals hate each other to the point they confront one another?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable it is that humans can be allies or else have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this over and over when countries have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

A Brink of Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide could watch nearly in real time while it moved towards catastrophe. Even so, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've sunk our naval vessels and destroyed our primary naval force. And, we would have responded through massive retaliation which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was a feeling of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted an alternative picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine or sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me what a great moment for the USSR, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so balanced , well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most significant thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the heads of state of America and the USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of optimism.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "That is a shame since we got along really well and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, after almost six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now friends, so I think global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Current Perils

Or is it? Part of the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders appear not to be able to grasp