‘After almost destroying our world, the families are friends’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, the world came closer to ruin than at any other point in the contemporary era. This transpired after an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Soviet atomic weapon installations were being built on Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, President JFK directed a naval task force to establish a naval blockade around Cuba. What followed was nearly two weeks filled with unbearable anxiety.

The Catastrophic Danger

The threat was clear. Should Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a series of global nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes would have followed, casting mankind toward total oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, in volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel element to the story. It is co-presented by Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over 13 days, held the fate of humanity within their grasp.

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

In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "How can individuals detest each other to the point they confront each other?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that individuals have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be total adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, related to the late president and now a writer and attorney. "We see this dynamic repeatedly when nations enter into conflict, highlighting the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What’s remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe nearly as it happened as it crept towards armageddon. However, the risk of destruction came closer than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted a military strike followed by a ground invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces stationed there would've launched a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would've destroyed our naval vessels as well as sunk our largest and most important fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have eradicated all life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy when everyone in their governments were advocating military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative version of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, describing it as a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine and positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, it was different. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, which was a wonderful outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that interpretation was not held by everybody. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget the known outcome. This effect is, in part, due to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous thing is the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the heads of state of America and USSR would appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative moved to America where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is a shame because we connected immediately and now we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly six decades since nearly annihilating the world, our lineages have become friends, so I think the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes with Present Dangers

Or is it? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to learn