‘After nearly destroying the world, our relatives have become allies’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer toward destruction more so than ever in the contemporary era. This happened after a US surveillance plane identified that Soviet atomic weapon bases were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade around Cuba. What followed constituted almost 14 days of extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Threat

The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide atomic strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting mankind into all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered repeatedly, in volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new element to this historical narrative. The series is co-presented by Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over 13 days, controlled the fate of humanity within their grasp.

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

In her view, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do people detest each other to the point they confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable it is that people can be friends or can become total adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "We see this repeatedly when countries have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly involved to fight."

A Brink of Disaster

What is notable about this event is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide were able to observe almost as it happened as it edged towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've destroyed our naval vessels and sunk America's primary fleet. And, we would have responded through massive retaliation which would have ended most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments demanded action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew his missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.

The Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the anxiety was felt globally. The podcast's presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative version of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine or positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she continues. In the years to come, however, that view was not shared by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is remarkably balanced and well produced so much so that Nina quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most groundbreaking thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and USSR to appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of optimism.

"We are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate because we connected immediately and we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our families have become friends, so I think global relations is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is that we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to grasp