Following nearly annihilating our planet, the families are friends’: a gripping podcast from JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, the planet came closer toward annihilation than at any other point in modern times. This transpired after a US reconnaissance plane found the fact that Soviet nuclear weapon bases were being assembled in the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost two weeks of impossible anxiety.

The Unthinkable Threat

The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a chain reaction of global nuclear attacks and counterstrikes might have ensued, plunging mankind into total ruination.

The October crisis has been documented extensively, through books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces a completely new perspective to this historical narrative. The series is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders that, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Russians considering? What were the American side planning?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the strength of the show is its attempt to question: "Why do people hate each other and confront each other?"

"It struck me how spectacular it is that humans have the potential to be friends or have the potential to be total adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and now an author as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What is notable regarding this event is that, because it unfolded so publicly, individuals globally could watch almost as it happened while it moved towards armageddon. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation came closer than most people realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have sunk our naval vessels and destroyed America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to exercise restraint while calmly negotiate when hawkish elements in their governments demanded action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Different Perspective

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine and sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive thing," she continues. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of the United States and USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Nina. "Following 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "That is a shame because we got along really well and now we’re friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since almost destroying the planet, our families have become allies, so I think global relations is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Current Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why this series seems so urgent is that we now are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend