‘After almost annihilating our world, the relatives are friends’: a thrilling podcast featuring John F. Kennedy & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the world veered closer toward annihilation more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred when an American reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear missile sites were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers from the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded a naval task force to enact a naval quarantine around the island. The ensuing period was almost 14 days of impossible stress.

The Unthinkable Danger

The peril remained obvious. If Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a cascade of global nuclear strikes and counterstrikes would have ensued, thrusting humanity toward total ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, through books, movies, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented dimension to the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the men who, over 13 days, grasped the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin thinking? What was Washington thinking?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also a professor specializing in international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "How can people detest one another and confront each other?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that individuals can be allies or else can become complete enemies," states Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

The Brink of Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding this event is that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens worldwide could watch nearly in real time as it crept towards disaster. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than what most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," says Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, which would've sunk the aircraft carriers and destroyed America's primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy when many advisors in their governments demanded military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about the crisis through the USSR's education system, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened.

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

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Later on, though, that perspective would not be held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed , well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, in part, thanks to contributions from historians. But, really, the most significant aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union to appear together publicly. 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 aren't the first," smiles Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "That is a shame since we got along immediately and now we are friends, which is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our families have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Parallels and Current Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now find ourselves in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp