Following almost destroying the world, our relatives have become allies’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the planet veered nearer toward destruction than at any other point in recent history. This transpired when an American surveillance plane identified that Russian atomic weapon sites were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from the United States. In response, U.S. President JFK ordered a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine encircling Cuba. What followed was almost 14 days filled with extreme anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The danger was palpable. If Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against their enemy, a series of global atomic attacks followed by retaliatory strikes would have followed, casting civilization into total oblivion.

The October crisis has been documented extensively, through volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a completely new dimension into the story. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures that, for two tense weeks, grasped the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What were Washington thinking?" asks Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and a professor of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the podcast is its endeavor to explore: "How can individuals hate one another and confront each other?"

"It struck me how remarkable it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

The Brink of Catastrophe

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened as it crept closer to armageddon. Even so, the risk of annihilation came closer than what most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would have launched a nuclear warhead at the American ships, and that would have obliterated the aircraft carriers and sunk our primary fleet. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended all life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, they succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements around them was pushing for action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles from Cuba and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, during those two weeks in October, the fear was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following these events, with Nina learned about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of events.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always fine or sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Nina quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, really, the most significant aspect remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the leaders of the United States and USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"Max and I aren't the first," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we got along really well and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since almost destroying the world, our lineages have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series seems so urgent is that we once again are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to grasp