‘After nearly destroying our world, our families are allies’: the gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity came nearer toward annihilation than at any other point in recent history. This occurred following the discovery that a US surveillance plane discovered the fact that Soviet atomic weapon installations were under construction in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted nearly two weeks filled with unbearable tension.

An Catastrophic Threat

The threat was obvious. If Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a chain reaction involving global atomic strikes and retaliatory strikes might have followed, casting mankind into all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined endlessly, through volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces a completely new element into this historical narrative. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over 13 days, controlled the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What were the United States thinking?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "Why do individuals detest one another to the point they confront each other?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or can become complete enemies," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently a writer and lawyer. "We see this over and over when nations enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the sheer folly involved to fight."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s notable about this event was that, because it transpired so publicly, citizens globally could watch nearly in real time as it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than what most people realised.

"Almost all officials in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead against the American ships, which would have destroyed the aircraft carriers and destroyed our primary fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur is a testament to both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements in their governments demanded action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed American missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the anxiety was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative picture of events.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly fine and sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Subsequently, however, that perspective would not be shared by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a sign of progress.

"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Nina. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we got along immediately and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades since nearly annihilating the planet, our families have become friends, so I think global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is because we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn