Following almost destroying our world, our relatives have become allies’: the thrilling audio series featuring JFK and Khrushchev’s descendants.

In the month of October 1962, the world edged nearer toward destruction more so than ever in recent history. This transpired after an American reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear weapon sites were being assembled in the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers from the United States. In response, President JFK commanded a naval task force to impose a maritime quarantine around Cuba. The next phase constituted almost a fortnight of impossible tension.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat remained palpable. If Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a series of global atomic strikes and counterstrikes would have ensued, plunging humanity toward all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, in books, films, and television programmes. But, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented element into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side planning? What was the United States considering?" ponders Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter and an academic of global relations.

In her view, the strength of the podcast is its attempt to objectively ask: "Why do nations detest each other to the point they go against one another?"

"It struck me how profound the fact that people have the potential to be friends or can become complete adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, related to the late president and currently a writer as well as attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over when nations have gone to war, and it just illustrates the sheer folly it is to fight."

The Precipice of Disaster

What is remarkable regarding this event is that, since it unfolded so publicly, individuals globally could watch nearly in real time as it edged closer to disaster. Even so, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than what most people realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for a military strike followed by an invasion," notes Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck the Cubans with the naval blockade, there is no question Soviet forces stationed there would've fired a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, which would've destroyed our naval vessels and sunk our largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have responded with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone in their governments were advocating military action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles based in Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, for those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, and Nina being taught about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system we were told that everything was always fine and positive."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great occasion for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, seen as a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that interpretation was not shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed , expertly crafted that Nina quips she nearly forgot the known outcome. This is, partly, due to contributions from renowned scholars. Yet, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the leaders of the United States and the USSR would appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"We are not the pioneers," notes Nina. "After 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate since we connected really well and we’re friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, after almost six decades of almost destroying the world, our lineages are now allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason the reason this series feels so necessary is because we now find ourselves in dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to comprehend