Following almost annihilating our world, our families have become allies’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, humanity edged nearer to destruction more so than ever during the contemporary era. This happened following the discovery that an American surveillance aircraft identified that Russian atomic missile installations were under construction on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK directed a naval task force to establish a naval quarantine encircling the island. The next phase was nearly a fortnight of extreme stress.

The Unthinkable Danger

The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide atomic attacks and counterstrikes would have followed, casting humanity into all-out destruction.

The October crisis has been covered extensively, in volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents an unprecedented element into this historical narrative. The series is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the figures that, for 13 days, controlled the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Soviet side thinking? What were the United States thinking?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic of international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people detest one another and go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that humans can be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and currently a writer and attorney. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

The Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable about this event was that, because it transpired so publicly, individuals worldwide could watch nearly as it happened as it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction came closer than what most people realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans using the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would have destroyed our naval vessels as well as sunk America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements in their governments was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed American similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after these events, and Nina learned about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted an alternative narrative of events.

"You said your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly wonderful or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view was not held by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, due to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of America and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a sign of optimism.

"We aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is a shame because we connected immediately and we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following almost six decades of almost destroying the world, our families have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn