Following nearly destroying our world, the relatives are friends’: the thrilling audio series from John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward annihilation more so than ever in modern times. This transpired following the discovery that an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Soviet atomic missile installations were being built on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine around the island. The ensuing period was nearly a fortnight filled with impossible tension.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, had fired on the other side, a series of global atomic attacks followed by retaliatory strikes would have ensued, casting civilization into total destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined extensively, in books, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought an unprecedented perspective to the story. It is co-presented by Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the men who, for 13 days, grasped the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What were the United States planning?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and an academic of international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the show is its attempt to explore: "How can people detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It struck me how profound it is that people have the potential to be allies or have the potential to be complete enemies," states Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and currently a writer and attorney. "History shows this over and over when countries enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe nearly as it happened while it edged closer to disaster. Even so, the risk of destruction came closer than most people realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed our aircraft carriers and destroyed our primary fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to both leaders, they succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his similar weapons from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, as was the sense of hope.

The Different Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, and Nina learned about it through the Soviet education system, which portrayed an alternative picture of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine and positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, and avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. Later on, though, that interpretation was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is so even-handed , well produced that Nina quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This is, in part, due to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR would appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

"We aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we got along immediately and we’re friends, something that is really great. Finally, following nearly six decades since nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Dangers

Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to comprehend