‘After almost destroying our world, the families are friends’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world edged closer to annihilation than at any other point during recent history. This happened after a US reconnaissance aircraft found the fact that Soviet atomic missile bases were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a maritime blockade encircling the island. What followed was nearly 14 days of extreme anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The peril was palpable. If Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear attacks followed by retaliatory strikes could have followed, plunging mankind into total oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, through volumes, movies, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new perspective into the story. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over 13 days, held the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side planning? What were Washington considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the beauty of the show lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do nations detest each other and go against each other?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that individuals have the potential to be friends or can become total enemies," adds Max Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of the late president and currently an author and attorney. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where nations enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

A Precipice of Disaster

What’s striking about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals globally could watch almost in real time as it crept towards catastrophe. However, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would've destroyed our naval vessels as well as sunk America's largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them demanded action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed his similar weapons from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, as was the sense of optimism.

The Different Perspective

Still, for those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina being taught about it through the USSR's education system, which presented an alternative version of events.

"You said your parent recalls it, and it was a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly wonderful and positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, which was a wonderful thing," she continues. Subsequently, though, that view would not be shared 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."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced , well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, truly, the most significant thing is the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable for descendants of the leaders of America and the USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a sign of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "That is a shame because we connected really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following nearly six decades of almost destroying the planet, our families have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Parallels and Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because world leaders appear not to be able to comprehend