Following almost annihilating our planet, our relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s descendants.

In October 1962, the world edged closer to destruction than at any other point during modern times. This happened after an American reconnaissance aircraft found that Soviet atomic weapon sites were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval blockade around the island. What followed constituted almost two weeks filled with unbearable stress.

An Catastrophic Threat

The danger remained palpable. If Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on their enemy, a series of global nuclear attacks and retaliatory strikes would have followed, thrusting humanity into total oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented extensively, through books, films, as well as TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel element to the story. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over 13 days, controlled the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Soviet side planning? What were the American side thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast is its endeavor to question: "How can individuals hate one another to the point they confront each other?"

"I am acutely aware how profound it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of the late president and currently an author and attorney. "History shows this repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates how unbelievably stupid it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding this event is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals around the world could watch nearly as it happened as it edged closer to armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"Almost all officials in the White House wanted an airstrike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would have fired a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and destroyed our largest and most important fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have responded with massive retaliation which would have eradicated all life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments was pushing for action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the missiles in Cuba while Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by the sense of hope.

A Different Perspective

Still, during those 13 days in October, the fear was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the Soviet education system, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was constantly wonderful and positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that view would not be shared by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to the participation of historians. But, really, the most momentous thing is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR to appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate since we connected really well and we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following almost 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages are now friends, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Current Perils

Or is it? Part of why The Bomb feels so necessary is because we now are living in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to learn