‘After almost destroying the planet, the relatives are friends’: a thrilling podcast from JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, the planet veered nearer toward annihilation than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft found the fact that Soviet nuclear missile installations were being assembled in the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from the US mainland. In response, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine encircling Cuba. The next phase was nearly two weeks of impossible anxiety.

The Catastrophic Threat

The threat remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide atomic attacks and counterstrikes might have followed, plunging civilization toward total ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered repeatedly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a novel element to the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders that, for two tense weeks, grasped the fate of the planet within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin considering? What was Washington thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to explore: "Why do people hate each other and go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that individuals have the potential to be allies or have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and currently an author and lawyer. "We see this over and over when nations have gone to war, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What’s striking regarding this event is that, since it transpired so publicly, people around the world could watch nearly as it happened while it moved towards catastrophe. However, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than most people realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and destroyed our largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have ended all life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when everyone in their governments demanded action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different picture of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system we were told that things are constantly fine and sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "I was informed what a great occasion for the USSR, because it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably balanced and well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most significant thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was unthinkable that relatives of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR would appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of hope.

"Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "Following 1991, my uncle moved to America and 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 got along really well and we’re friends, something that is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years since almost destroying the world, our lineages have become allies, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we now find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to grasp