Following nearly destroying the planet, our relatives are friends’: the thrilling audio series featuring JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, humanity edged nearer to destruction more so than ever during modern times. This happened when a US reconnaissance aircraft found that Soviet nuclear weapon sites were being assembled on Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine around Cuba. What followed constituted almost a fortnight filled with impossible anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The peril remained obvious. If Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide atomic strikes and counterstrikes might have followed, casting civilization into total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered endlessly, in books, movies, and television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a completely new perspective to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men that, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What was the Russians considering? What were Washington planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the podcast lies in its endeavor to explore: "Why do people hate each other and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that people have the potential to be friends or can become total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently an author and lawyer. "History shows this over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

A Brink Towards Disaster

What’s remarkable about this event was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people globally could watch almost as it happened as it moved towards catastrophe. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a nuclear warhead against the American ships, which would have destroyed the naval vessels as well as destroyed America's largest and most important naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm while calmly negotiate when many advisors around them were advocating military action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the missiles from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, during those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system we were told that things are constantly wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion for the USSR, as it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, which was a positive outcome," she continues. Later on, however, that interpretation was not held by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so balanced and expertly crafted so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This effect is, in part, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most momentous thing is the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the Soviet Union to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of hope.

"We are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative moved to America where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met prior to this project," adds Max. "That is unfortunate because we connected immediately and now we’re friends, which is really great. Ultimately, following almost six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages have become friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels with Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn