‘After nearly annihilating the world, the relatives are allies’: a gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, the planet edged closer to annihilation than at any other point in the contemporary era. This transpired when a US reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear missile sites were under construction in Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval quarantine around Cuba. The next phase constituted almost two weeks of impossible stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The peril was obvious. If Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a series of worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging mankind into total destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, through books, films, and television programmes. But, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel perspective into the story. The series is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the figures that, for 13 days, held the fate of the world in their hands.

"What was the Russians thinking? What were the United States considering?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and a professor of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the podcast lies in its attempt to explore: "How can nations hate one another and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that people have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total enemies," states Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as lawyer. "We see this over and over in instances where nations enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

A Brink of Disaster

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals worldwide could watch nearly as it happened while it moved towards disaster. Even so, the danger of destruction came closer than what anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have deployed a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would've obliterated our naval vessels as well as sunk America's largest and most important naval force. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have ended most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who succeeded in remain calm while calmly negotiate at a time when many advisors in their governments were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from Cuba and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles from Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world shortly after the crisis, and Khrushcheva being taught about it via the Soviet education system, which painted an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly wonderful and positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great occasion it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Later on, however, that perspective would not be held by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed and well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, in part, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and Soviet Union to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a symbol of progress.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we got along immediately and now we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now friends, so I think global relations is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Current Perils

Or is it? Part of why this series feels so necessary is because we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp