Following almost annihilating our world, our relatives have become allies’: the thrilling audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants.

During the month of October 1962, the planet veered closer toward ruin than at any other point in modern times. This transpired following the discovery that a US reconnaissance plane discovered the fact that Soviet nuclear missile bases were being built on Cuba, a mere 100 miles from the United States. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval blockade encircling Cuba. The ensuing period was nearly a fortnight filled with extreme anxiety.

The Catastrophic Threat

The peril was obvious. Should President Kennedy, or his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade involving worldwide atomic strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting civilization toward total ruination.

The October crisis has been covered endlessly, through books, movies, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb introduces an unprecedented element into the story. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the figures who, for 13 days, grasped the destiny of the world in their hands.

"What was the Kremlin considering? What was Washington considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and an academic of international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people hate one another and confront one another?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that humans can be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this dynamic repeatedly when countries enter into conflict, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality it is to engage in warfare."

A Precipice of Disaster

What is remarkable about the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals globally could watch nearly in real time while it crept closer to disaster. However, the risk of annihilation was more imminent than what anybody realised.

"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans using the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's primary naval force. In turn, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of optimism.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days in October, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s co-hosts were born shortly after the crisis, and Nina learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent remembers it, describing it as a scary time," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know that much regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that things are always fine and positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that perspective would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying America."

A Unlikely Partnership

The Bomb is so balanced and well produced so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. But, truly, the most momentous aspect remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union to appear together publicly. That these two individuals are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a sign of hope.

"We are not the pioneers," notes Nina. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers prior to this project," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is unfortunate because we got along really well and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is that we once again are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend