‘After nearly destroying our planet, the relatives have become friends’: a gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, humanity came closer toward destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred when a US reconnaissance aircraft found that Soviet atomic weapon bases were being built in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval blockade around the island. The ensuing period constituted nearly two weeks filled with unbearable anxiety.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series involving worldwide atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting civilization into all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, in books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel perspective into the story. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures that, for two tense weeks, held the fate of the planet in their hands.

"What was the Russians planning? What were the United States thinking?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of global relations.

In her view, the strength of the podcast lies in its endeavor to explore: "How can people hate each other and go against one another?"

"It struck me how spectacular it is that individuals can be allies or else can become complete adversaries," adds Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of the late president and now an author as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic repeatedly in instances where countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink of Disaster

What is striking about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, people worldwide could watch nearly as it happened as it edged towards disaster. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and sunk our primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded through massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur stands as credit to both leaders, they managed to remain calm while engaging in diplomacy when hawkish elements around them were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of hope.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which painted a slightly different version of events.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always wonderful or positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Subsequently, however, that perspective was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed and well produced so much so that Nina quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most groundbreaking aspect is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of America and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a symbol of hope.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate because we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly six decades of almost destroying the world, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels and Present Perils

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now are living in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to comprehend