‘After nearly annihilating our planet, the families have become allies’: a gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, humanity came closer to ruin than at any other point during recent history. This occurred following the discovery that a US surveillance plane found that Soviet nuclear weapon installations were being assembled on Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted almost a fortnight filled with impossible tension.

An Catastrophic Danger

The danger was obvious. Should President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes might have ensued, plunging humanity into total ruination.

The October crisis has been examined extensively, through volumes, movies, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents an unprecedented perspective into the story. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the figures that, over 13 days, controlled the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Russians considering? What was the United States considering?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the unique appeal of the show is its attempt to objectively ask: "How can nations hate each other to the point they oppose each other?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that people can be friends or have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently an author and attorney. "We see this over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to fight."

The Brink of Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people worldwide could watch almost in real time while it crept closer to catastrophe. However, the danger of destruction came closer than anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces stationed there would've fired a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, which would have destroyed our naval vessels as well as destroyed America's largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur is a testament to both leaders, who managed to keep their heads while calmly negotiate at a time when many advisors in their governments were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew American missiles based in Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was felt globally. The podcast's co-hosts were born shortly after the crisis, and Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted a slightly different picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always fine and sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

An Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most groundbreaking aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the leaders of America and the USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a symbol of progress.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we had never met prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is a shame because we got along immediately and now we’re friends, which is really great. Finally, following nearly six decades since nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels and Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we once again are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn