Following almost annihilating the planet, the families have become allies’: the gripping audio series from JFK and Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point in the contemporary era. This happened when a US surveillance plane discovered that Russian nuclear missile sites were under construction on the island of Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from American soil. In response, President JFK ordered a naval task force to establish a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted nearly two weeks filled with extreme anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The threat remained obvious. Should Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series involving global nuclear attacks and retaliatory strikes would have ensued, plunging humanity toward total oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, through volumes, films, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast The Bomb presents a completely new perspective into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, for 13 days, held the fate of the world in their hands.

"What were the Russians thinking? What were the American side considering?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can people hate one another and oppose each other?"

"It struck me how profound it is that humans have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," remarks Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now a writer and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, demonstrating the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide could watch nearly as it happened as it crept closer to catastrophe. However, the threat of annihilation was more imminent than what most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, there is no question the Russians on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would have obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's primary naval force. And, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when everyone around them was pushing for action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Yet, during those 13 days in October, the fear was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed a slightly different version of events.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine or sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view was not shared by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is so even-handed and well produced so much so that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of America and USSR would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of hope.

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

"However we were strangers prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is a shame since we got along immediately and we’re friends, something that is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now allies, so I think the world is safer, a little bit."

Modern Echoes with Current Perils

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we once again are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, partly since world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn