‘After nearly annihilating our planet, our relatives are friends’: the gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward annihilation more so than ever during modern times. This happened after a US surveillance plane found that Soviet nuclear missile installations were under construction in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade encircling the island. The ensuing period was almost a fortnight of unbearable anxiety.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril was obvious. Should President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a series involving global nuclear attacks and counterstrikes would have followed, casting civilization toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered repeatedly, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new element into this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the men who, for 13 days, controlled the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What were the Russians planning? What were the American side considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and a professor of international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the podcast is its attempt to question: "Why do individuals detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that individuals can be friends or have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and currently a writer and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

A Brink of Disaster

What is notable about this event was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals around the world could watch nearly in real time while it edged towards disaster. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation came closer than what most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike followed by an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces stationed there would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, which would've destroyed our naval vessels as well as destroyed America's primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them demanded military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed his similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Different Perspective

Still, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable globally. The podcast's co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, with Nina learned about it via the Soviet education system, which portrayed an alternative narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine and positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she continues. In the years to come, though, that perspective was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed and well produced that Nina jokes she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, in part, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and USSR would appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected immediately and we are friends, something that is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels and Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to comprehend