Following almost annihilating the planet, our relatives are friends’: a gripping audio series featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, humanity edged closer to destruction more so than ever in the contemporary era. This transpired when a US reconnaissance aircraft identified the fact that Russian nuclear missile bases were under construction on the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to establish a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted almost 14 days filled with unbearable anxiety.

The Catastrophic Danger

The danger remained clear. If President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, had fired against their enemy, a series involving global atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes might have ensued, casting civilization into all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, in volumes, films, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces a novel element to the story. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, over 13 days, controlled the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side considering? What was the United States thinking?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and an academic specializing in global relations.

For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "How can individuals detest one another to the point they oppose one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that humans can be friends or have the potential to be complete enemies," states Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to engage in warfare."

A Precipice of Disaster

What’s striking about this event was that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals globally could watch almost in real time as it crept towards armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction came closer than most people understood at the time.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly the Russians stationed there would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, which would've sunk our naval vessels and destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to both leaders, they managed to exercise restraint and calmly negotiate at a time when many advisors around them were advocating action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was the sense of optimism.

A Different Viewpoint

Yet, during those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Nina being taught about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which presented a slightly different picture of events.

"As you mentioned your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine and sunny."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. Later on, though, that perspective was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

An Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed and expertly crafted so much so that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of historians. But, really, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was inconceivable for descendants of the heads of state of America and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a symbol of hope.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle moved to America where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we got along immediately and now we’re friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly six decades of almost destroying the world, our lineages have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Perils

Or is it? One reason the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend