Following nearly destroying our world, the families are allies’: the gripping podcast from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, humanity edged nearer to ruin more so than ever in recent history. This occurred following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified the fact that Soviet atomic weapon bases were being built in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles from American soil. In response, President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly 14 days filled with unbearable tension.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series of worldwide nuclear strikes and counterstrikes could have followed, plunging humanity toward total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered extensively, through volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a novel dimension into the story. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders who, over 13 days, held the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What was the Kremlin planning? What was Washington thinking?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to question: "Why do nations detest each other to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that individuals have the potential to be allies or have the potential to be total enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink of Catastrophe

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals around the world could watch nearly as it happened while it crept closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would've deployed a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, which would've destroyed the naval vessels as well as destroyed America's primary naval force. And, we would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to keep their heads and calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements in their governments demanded action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of optimism.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, during those 13 days of October 1962, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative picture of events.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always fine or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that view was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so balanced , expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most groundbreaking aspect is the involvement of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a sign of optimism.

"We are not the pioneers," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected really well and now we are friends, which is really great. Ultimately, after almost six decades since almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Current Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn