Following nearly destroying our world, our families have become allies’: a gripping audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the world edged closer toward destruction than at any other point in the contemporary era. This happened when an American surveillance aircraft found the fact that Russian nuclear missile bases were being built in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was nearly two weeks of extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Threat

The danger remained palpable. If President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired against the other side, a chain reaction involving global atomic strikes and retaliatory strikes would have ensued, thrusting mankind into total ruination.

The October crisis has been examined repeatedly, through books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the men who, over 13 days, held the fate of the planet in their hands.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What was the American side planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and an academic of global relations.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its attempt to question: "How can nations detest one another to the point they go against each other?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be complete enemies," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to the late president and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates the sheer folly involved to engage in warfare."

The Brink of Disaster

What is striking about this event is that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens worldwide were able to observe almost as it happened while it crept closer to disaster. However, the danger of destruction was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have deployed a nuclear warhead against the American ships, which would've destroyed the aircraft carriers and sunk America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have eradicated all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm while engaging in diplomacy when hawkish elements around them demanded action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew American missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of optimism.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days in October, the fear was felt globally. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following these events, and Nina being taught about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which presented an alternative version of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, and it was a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "But in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system we were told that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was different. "They told me what a great moment it was, because it was a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, which was a wonderful thing," she continues. Subsequently, however, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a failure for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva jokes she nearly forgot the known the ending. This is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the heads of state of America and the USSR would appear side by side. That these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a sign of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we got along immediately and we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, after almost 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels and Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now find ourselves in dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend