Following almost annihilating our world, our families are friends’: a thrilling podcast featuring JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, humanity edged closer to annihilation more so than ever during the contemporary era. This transpired when a US surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet atomic missile installations were being built in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the US mainland. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a maritime quarantine encircling the island. What followed was almost 14 days filled with unbearable tension.

An Catastrophic Danger

The peril remained palpable. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a series involving worldwide atomic attacks followed by retaliatory strikes would have ensued, thrusting mankind into total oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been documented extensively, in volumes, films, as well as television programmes. However, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" presents an unprecedented dimension into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, relatives of the leaders that, over 13 days, grasped the fate of the world in their hands.

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

In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast is its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do people detest each other and go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how profound the fact that people can be friends or can become total enemies," states Max Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author and lawyer. "We see this repeatedly when countries have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

The Precipice of Catastrophe

What is notable regarding this event was that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals around the world were able to observe almost as it happened as it crept closer to armageddon. Nonetheless, the risk of destruction came closer than what anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces stationed there would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers and sunk our primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated all life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them were advocating military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his similar weapons from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, and Nina learned about the crisis via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different version of events.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, the public were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "I was informed that it was a triumphant occasion for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. In the years to come, though, that interpretation was not held by all Russians. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

An Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is so balanced and well produced that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most groundbreaking thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and USSR would appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of progress.

"We aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected really well and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the world, our families have become friends, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason the reason this series feels so necessary is because we now are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn