Following nearly destroying our planet, the relatives are friends’: the thrilling audio series from John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, the world came nearer toward annihilation more so than ever during recent history. This occurred following the discovery that a US reconnaissance plane found that Soviet nuclear missile sites were under construction in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a maritime blockade around Cuba. The next phase constituted nearly two weeks of unbearable tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril was obvious. Should Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a series involving global nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes might have followed, thrusting civilization toward total ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered extensively, through books, movies, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a novel perspective into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the men who, for 13 days, held the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Russians thinking? What were the American side planning?" asks Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "Why do nations hate one another and confront one another?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or have the potential to be total adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates the sheer folly involved to engage in warfare."

The Precipice of Disaster

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens globally were able to observe nearly in real time while it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians on the ground would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would have destroyed our aircraft carriers and sunk our largest and most important fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to both leaders, who managed to remain calm while calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, and it was a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always fine or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion for the USSR, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. Subsequently, though, that perspective would not be held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably balanced , expertly crafted so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for descendants of the heads of state of America and the USSR would appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"We aren't the first," notes Nina. "After 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected immediately and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years of almost destroying the world, our lineages are now friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Present Dangers

Or is it? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is that we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn