‘After almost annihilating the world, the families are allies’: a thrilling podcast featuring JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, the planet edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired when an American reconnaissance plane found that Russian atomic missile bases were under construction on Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. In response, President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to enact a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly 14 days filled with extreme anxiety.

An Catastrophic Danger

The peril was obvious. If Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of global atomic attacks and counterstrikes would have ensued, thrusting humanity into total ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, through volumes, films, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new perspective into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the leaders that, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What were the American side planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and an academic of international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the podcast lies in its attempt to explore: "How can individuals hate one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular it is that people have the potential to be friends or have the potential to be total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and currently a writer as well as lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is notable regarding the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened as it edged towards catastrophe. Even so, the risk of destruction was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces stationed there would have deployed a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's largest and most important naval force. And, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them was pushing for action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed his missiles from Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Different Perspective

Yet, during those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world shortly after these events, and Nina being taught about it via the Soviet education system, which painted an alternative picture of events.

"You said your father remembers it, and it was a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas under the Soviet system the official line was that things are always wonderful or positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. In the years to come, though, that view would not be held by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is remarkably balanced and well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most groundbreaking thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of America and the USSR would appear together publicly. That these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate because we connected really well and now we’re friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after almost six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now friends, so I think the world is more secure, a little bit."

Modern Parallels and Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we once again are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to have the capacity to comprehend