‘After almost destroying the planet, our families have become allies’: the gripping podcast featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer toward annihilation than at any other point in modern times. This occurred when an American reconnaissance aircraft found that Russian atomic weapon sites were being built on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the United States. In response, President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to establish a naval blockade encircling Cuba. The next phase was almost a fortnight filled with extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Danger

The peril remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction of global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting civilization into all-out destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined endlessly, through books, films, and TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a novel dimension into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, grasped the fate of the planet in their hands.

"What was the Kremlin considering? What was the United States planning?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor of international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can individuals detest one another and confront each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable the fact that people have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be complete enemies," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and currently an author and attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to fight."

A Brink of Catastrophe

What is notable about this event is that, since it unfolded so publicly, individuals worldwide were able to observe almost as it happened while it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would have destroyed the aircraft carriers as well as sunk our largest and most important fleet. And, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm while engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them demanded military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) removed his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which presented an alternative picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system we were told that things are constantly fine or positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, though, that view was not held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is so balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect remains the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of America and Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of progress.

"Max and I aren't the first," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, after nearly six decades since almost destroying the planet, our families have become allies, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason the reason this series feels so necessary is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to learn