Following almost annihilating the world, our families are friends’: the gripping audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity came nearer toward destruction than at any other point in modern times. This occurred following the discovery that an American surveillance plane discovered the fact that Soviet atomic missile bases were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval blockade encircling Cuba. What followed constituted almost a fortnight filled with impossible stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The danger was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a series involving worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging civilization into all-out destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined extensively, in books, films, and television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a novel perspective to this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the men that, over 13 days, held the fate of the world in their hands.

"What was the Russians planning? What was the United States considering?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor of global relations.

For her, the unique appeal of the podcast is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do nations hate one another and go against one another?"

"It struck me how spectacular it is that people can be allies or have the potential to be total adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and now a writer as well as lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, people globally were able to observe almost in real time while it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the risk of destruction came closer than what most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," notes Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would've obliterated the naval vessels and destroyed America's primary fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through massive retaliation which would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when hawkish elements in their governments demanded action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew American similar weapons based in Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Different Viewpoint

Still, during 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, and Khrushcheva being taught about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative picture of events.

"You said your parent remembers it, and it was a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. In the years to come, though, that view was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is remarkably balanced and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, really, the most significant thing remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and Soviet Union to appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Nina. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "That is unfortunate since we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend