‘After almost annihilating our world, the families have become allies’: a thrilling audio series from JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During October 1962, humanity veered closer toward annihilation more so than ever in the contemporary era. This happened after a US reconnaissance aircraft found the fact that Russian atomic weapon installations were being assembled on the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a naval quarantine around Cuba. What followed constituted nearly two weeks filled with impossible anxiety.

The Catastrophic Danger

The threat was clear. If Kennedy, or else the Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series of global nuclear attacks followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting civilization into total destruction.

This pivotal 1962 event has been covered endlessly, in volumes, movies, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel element to this historical narrative. The series is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the figures who, over 13 days, controlled the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Soviet side thinking? What was Washington considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor of international affairs.

For her, the strength of the show is its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do nations hate each other and confront each other?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that individuals have the potential to be friends or can become total adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of the late president and currently an author as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries have gone to war, and it just illustrates the profound irrationality involved to fight."

A Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What’s notable about this event is that, since it unfolded in the global spotlight, individuals worldwide could watch nearly as it happened while it crept towards disaster. Nonetheless, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans using the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would have deployed a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have sunk the naval vessels and sunk America's primary fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through massive retaliation which would have ended all life on the planet."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to keep their heads while calmly negotiate at a time when everyone around them was pushing for military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) withdrew American missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, as was a feeling of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, during those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva learned about the crisis via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly wonderful and positive."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, it was distinct. "I was informed that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and avoided a global war, which was a positive outcome," she continues. Later on, however, that interpretation would not be shared by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Partnership

This podcast is so even-handed , well produced so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known outcome. This is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant thing remains the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it was unthinkable for relatives of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of hope.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," notes Nina. "After 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with the former president's family."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "That is a shame since we connected really well and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years of almost destroying the planet, our lineages are now allies, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Current Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we now are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend