Following nearly annihilating our planet, our relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, the world came closer to destruction than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired after a US reconnaissance plane discovered the fact that Russian atomic weapon installations were being built in the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to establish a naval blockade around Cuba. The next phase was almost a fortnight filled with unbearable stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The peril remained clear. If Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a series of global nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes could have followed, thrusting humanity into all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined extensively, in books, films, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new dimension into this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the leaders who, for 13 days, controlled the destiny of the planet within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin considering? What were the American side planning?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also an academic of global relations.

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

"It was not lost on me how spectacular it is that humans have the potential to be allies or else can become total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer and attorney. "History shows this over and over when nations have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

A Brink of Disaster

What’s notable about this event was that, since it transpired so publicly, citizens globally could watch nearly as it happened while it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation came closer than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, there is no question the Russians on the ground would have launched a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed our naval vessels as well as destroyed our largest and most important naval force. And, we would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack 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 while engaging in diplomacy when many advisors in their governments was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew his similar weapons based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of hope.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva being taught about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of events.

"You said your parent recalls it, and it was a scary time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, the public really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly wonderful and sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment it was, as it was a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that view was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he refrained from destroying America."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced so much so that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known outcome. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of the United States and the USSR would appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the first," notes Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame since we got along immediately and now we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, following almost 60 years since almost destroying the world, our lineages have become friends, so I think the world is safer, a little bit."

Modern Parallels with Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason The Bomb feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to comprehend