‘After nearly annihilating the planet, our relatives have become allies’: a gripping audio series from John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the planet came nearer toward annihilation than at any other point in the contemporary era. This happened when a US reconnaissance aircraft identified that Russian nuclear weapon bases were being built on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to establish a naval quarantine around the island. What followed constituted nearly 14 days of impossible tension.

The Unthinkable Danger

The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a chain reaction of global atomic strikes followed by counterstrikes would have followed, thrusting civilization into all-out oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, in volumes, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb introduces a completely new dimension to this historical narrative. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the men who, over two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What were the United States considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and an academic specializing in international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations hate each other and confront each other?"

"It struck me how spectacular the fact that people have the potential to be friends or can become total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as lawyer. "History shows this over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding this event was that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened as it crept towards armageddon. Nonetheless, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated the naval vessels as well as destroyed America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have ended most life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when many advisors around them was pushing for military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Still, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was felt globally. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born shortly after the crisis, with Nina being taught about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative version of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus avoided the war, which was a positive thing," she adds. Subsequently, however, that interpretation would not be held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced , well produced that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of America and Soviet Union to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate because we got along really well and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our families have become allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Current Perils

Or is it? One reason why this series feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend