Following almost annihilating our world, our relatives have become friends’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the world veered closer to annihilation more so than ever during recent history. This transpired when an American surveillance aircraft identified that Russian atomic weapon bases were being built on Cuba, less than 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a naval blockade encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted nearly 14 days of unbearable anxiety.

The Unthinkable Threat

The peril remained clear. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging humanity toward all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined endlessly, through volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a completely new dimension to the story. The series is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What was the Russians planning? What were the United States planning?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations.

In her view, the strength of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "How can people detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound it is that people can be allies or else can become complete adversaries," remarks Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to fight."

A Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it transpired so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe nearly as it happened while it edged closer to catastrophe. However, the threat of annihilation came closer than anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," notes Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would have obliterated our naval vessels and sunk our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded with massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to remain calm while calmly negotiate when many advisors around them were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew American similar weapons based in Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, and it was a scary day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a crisis, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always fine or positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, in part, due to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most significant thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of progress.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate because we connected really well and we are friends, which is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our families are now friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Current Perils

Or is it? Part of why this series seems so urgent is that we once again are living in dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to learn