‘After almost annihilating our planet, our relatives have become friends’: the gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, humanity veered closer toward destruction than at any other point in the contemporary era. This happened when an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear weapon bases were being built on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade around Cuba. The next phase was almost 14 days filled with impossible stress.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat was clear. Should President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, initiated an attack against their enemy, a series involving worldwide nuclear strikes and counterstrikes could have followed, thrusting humanity toward all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered endlessly, in books, movies, and TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces an unprecedented perspective into the story. The series is co-presented by Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders that, for two tense weeks, held the fate of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What were the United States considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and an academic specializing in global relations.

In her view, the strength of the podcast is its attempt to explore: "Why do nations detest one another and oppose one another?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that humans can be friends or else can become total adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author as well as lawyer. "We see this dynamic repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to fight."

The Brink of Disaster

What’s notable about this event is that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens around the world were able to observe almost in real time as it edged towards disaster. Even so, the risk of annihilation came closer than what anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by a ground invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated our naval vessels as well as sunk our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in remain calm while engaging in diplomacy when hawkish elements around them was pushing for action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed American missiles based in Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of hope.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days in October, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina being taught about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different version of events.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal about it, since it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "They told me what a great occasion for the USSR, as it was a direct confrontation. The leaders managed to resolve it, and avoided the war, which was a wonderful outcome," she adds. Later on, however, that view would not be held by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a failure for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is so balanced and well produced so much so that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of America and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"We aren't the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with the former president's family."

"However we had never met before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate since we connected really well and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, after nearly 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our families are now friends, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Parallels with Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series seems so urgent is because we now find ourselves in a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend