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

During October 1962, the planet came nearer to ruin than at any other point during recent history. This happened after a US reconnaissance aircraft identified that Soviet nuclear missile sites were being assembled on Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around the island. The ensuing period was almost two weeks filled with extreme stress.

The Unthinkable Threat

The threat remained palpable. Should Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a series involving worldwide atomic attacks followed by retaliatory strikes would have ensued, thrusting civilization toward all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined endlessly, in books, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a novel element to this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the leaders who, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What were Washington thinking?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and an academic of global relations.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "How can nations detest each other to the point they confront each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable it is that humans can be friends or else can become total enemies," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now a writer as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality involved to fight."

The Brink of Disaster

What’s striking regarding this event is that, because it unfolded so publicly, individuals worldwide were able to observe almost in real time while it crept towards disaster. Even so, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, which would have obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as sunk 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 Earth."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to both leaders, who managed to keep their heads while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments was pushing for military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew his similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, during those 13 days in October, the anxiety was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the USSR's education system, which presented a slightly different version of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always fine or positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed and well produced that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot the known outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant thing is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of America and the USSR would appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"We aren't the first," smiles Nina. "After 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we had never met prior to this project," adds Max. "That is a shame because we got along immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following nearly 60 years since almost destroying the planet, our lineages have become friends, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why this series seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to comprehend