Following nearly annihilating our world, our relatives have become allies’: the gripping audio series from John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, the planet edged closer to ruin than at any other point during the contemporary era. This occurred when an American reconnaissance plane found that Russian atomic missile installations were under construction on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime blockade encircling the island. The next phase was almost two weeks filled with extreme anxiety.

The Catastrophic Danger

The threat was obvious. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a series of worldwide atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes could have followed, plunging mankind toward all-out oblivion.

The Cuban missile crisis has been documented endlessly, through volumes, movies, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a completely new element to this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the leaders who, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of the world within their grasp.

"What was the Kremlin considering? What was the United States thinking?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor of global relations.

In her view, the unique appeal of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people hate each other and oppose each other?"

"I am acutely aware how profound it is that people can be friends or else have the potential to be total enemies," adds Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently a writer as well as lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality involved to fight."

The Precipice of Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, people globally could watch almost as it happened as it moved towards armageddon. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike followed by a ground invasion," notes Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans with the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've deployed a nuclear warhead against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've sunk our naval vessels as well as destroyed America's primary fleet. In turn, we would have retaliated with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who succeeded in remain calm while engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them were advocating action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope.

A Divergent Perspective

Still, for those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world shortly after the crisis, with Nina learned about it through the USSR's school curriculum, which painted an alternative version of events.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a crisis, and under the Soviet system we were told that things are always fine or positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was distinct. "They told me what a great occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start the war, which was a positive thing," she continues. 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 defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of the United States and USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," notes Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we had never met before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is a shame because we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes with Present Dangers

Or is it? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to be able to comprehend