Following almost annihilating the planet, the relatives have become allies’: a thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, the planet veered nearer toward annihilation more so than ever during recent history. This transpired when a US surveillance plane discovered that Soviet atomic missile installations were being built in Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. In response, President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted almost a fortnight filled with unbearable anxiety.

The Catastrophic Threat

The threat remained clear. Should President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a chain reaction of global atomic strikes and retaliatory strikes would have followed, casting civilization into all-out oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined repeatedly, through volumes, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new element to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the men that, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Soviet side considering? What was the American side planning?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in global relations.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to question: "Why do people detest each other and go against one another?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that people can be friends or have the potential to be total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently an author as well as attorney. "History shows this dynamic over and over in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

The Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What’s remarkable about this event was that, since it transpired so publicly, citizens around the world could watch nearly in real time while it moved closer to armageddon. Even so, the threat of destruction came closer than what most people realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," notes Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk the naval vessels as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have ended all life on Earth."

The fact this did not occur is a testament to both leaders, they succeeded in keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments was pushing for military action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by the sense of hope.

The Different Perspective

Yet, for those 13 days of October 1962, the tension was felt globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative version of what happened.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are always fine and positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was distinct. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that view would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably balanced , expertly crafted that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, in part, thanks to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most groundbreaking aspect remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that relatives of the leaders of the United States and the USSR to appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We are not the first," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "That is unfortunate because we connected immediately and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly six decades since almost destroying the world, our lineages are now friends, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend