Following nearly destroying the world, our relatives have become allies’: a gripping audio series from JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In the month of October 1962, humanity came closer toward destruction more so than ever during recent history. This transpired following the discovery that an American reconnaissance aircraft identified that Russian atomic missile installations were under construction in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. In response, President JFK directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a naval quarantine around the island. What followed was almost two weeks filled with impossible anxiety.

An Unthinkable Threat

The danger was clear. Should Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a series of worldwide nuclear strikes and counterstrikes would have ensued, casting civilization toward all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered repeatedly, in volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought an unprecedented dimension into the story. The series is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the men that, over 13 days, controlled the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What was the United States thinking?" questions Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and an academic of international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the show lies in its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do people hate one another to the point they oppose one another?"

"I am acutely aware how spectacular it is that people can be allies or can become total enemies," remarks Kennedy, son of RFK, related to the late president and now an author and lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality involved to fight."

The Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, individuals globally were able to observe nearly in real time as it moved closer to armageddon. However, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," notes Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces stationed there would have fired a nuclear warhead at the American ships, which would've destroyed the naval vessels as well as sunk America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who succeeded in remain calm and engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements in their governments were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles from Cuba and President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, matched by the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Perspective

Still, for those two weeks in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different picture of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was constantly fine and positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, however, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, thus avoided the war, which was a positive thing," she adds. Later on, though, that perspective was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably balanced and well produced that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect is the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union to appear side by side. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We are not the pioneers," smiles Nina. "After 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along immediately and now we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, following nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our families have become friends, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Dangers

Or is it? Part of why The Bomb seems so urgent is that we once again find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to learn