Following almost destroying the planet, our relatives are allies’: a gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the world came closer toward ruin more so than ever during recent history. This occurred following the discovery that an American surveillance plane identified the fact that Russian nuclear weapon installations were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The next phase constituted almost 14 days filled with unbearable anxiety.

The Unthinkable Threat

The threat was clear. Should President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction involving global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting civilization into all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, in books, films, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought an unprecedented dimension into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders that, over two tense weeks, grasped the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side considering? What was Washington considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the beauty of the show is its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do nations hate each other and go against each other?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular the fact that people have the potential to be allies or can become complete enemies," remarks Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to the late president and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over when nations enter into conflict, highlighting the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What’s striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired so publicly, individuals globally were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the threat of destruction came closer than what most people realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would've fired a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, which would've sunk the aircraft carriers and destroyed America's primary fleet. In turn, we would have responded with massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when hawkish elements around them demanded military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, during those two weeks in October, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina being taught about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, it was distinct. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start the war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed and expertly crafted so much so that Nina quips it almost made her forget the known the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. But, really, the most groundbreaking aspect is the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of America and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. That these two individuals can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Nina. "After 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate since we got along really well and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly six decades since almost destroying the world, our families have become allies, so I think the world is safer, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Present Perils

Is that truly the case? One reason why this series feels so necessary is that we now find ourselves living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to comprehend