‘After nearly annihilating our planet, our relatives are friends’: a thrilling podcast from JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, humanity edged closer to destruction than at any other point during recent history. This happened following the discovery that a US reconnaissance plane discovered the fact that Soviet atomic weapon sites were under construction in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, President JFK ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to impose a maritime quarantine encircling the island. What followed was nearly two weeks filled with extreme tension.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear attacks and counterstrikes might have ensued, casting mankind toward total oblivion.

The October crisis has been documented endlessly, in volumes, films, as well as television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces a novel dimension to the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders that, over 13 days, controlled the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Russians planning? What were the United States thinking?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of global relations.

In her view, the strength of the show lies in its attempt to question: "Why do individuals detest one another and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular it is that people have the potential to be friends or else can become total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently a writer as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic repeatedly in instances where countries have gone to war, demonstrating the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s striking about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens around the world could watch almost as it happened while it edged towards disaster. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians on the ground would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would've obliterated our naval vessels as well as destroyed our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone in their governments were advocating action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his missiles based in Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was the sense of hope.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following these events, with Nina being taught about it via the Soviet education system, which portrayed an alternative picture of events.

"As you mentioned your father remembers it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly wonderful or sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start the war, seen as a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, though, that perspective was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably balanced , expertly crafted that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most significant aspect remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that descendants of the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "That is unfortunate because we connected immediately and we’re friends, which is really great. Ultimately, after almost six decades since almost destroying the world, our families are now friends, suggesting global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is that we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend