🔗 Share this article ‘After nearly destroying the world, our families have become friends’: the gripping podcast from JFK and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives. In the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward destruction more so than ever during recent history. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance plane identified the fact that Soviet nuclear missile bases were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded a naval task force to establish a naval blockade encircling Cuba. What followed was nearly two weeks filled with unbearable tension. An Catastrophic Danger The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a chain reaction of global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have followed, casting humanity toward all-out ruination. The October crisis has been documented repeatedly, through volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel dimension to the story. The series is co-presented by Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, for two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of humanity in their hands. "What were the Russians thinking? What was the American side planning?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of international affairs. For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "Why do people detest each other to the point they go against each other?" "It was not lost on me how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and currently an author as well as attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight." The Brink of Catastrophe What is striking regarding this event was that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens globally were able to observe nearly in real time while it moved closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted an airstrike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, which would have sunk our naval vessels as well as sunk America's primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth." The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them was pushing for action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his missiles based in Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of optimism. The Divergent Viewpoint Yet, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable globally. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly fine or sunny." Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America." An Unlikely Collaboration This podcast is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement 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 would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress. "We are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along really well and now we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, following nearly 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our families are now allies, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat." Modern Echoes with Current Perils Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn
In the month of October 1962, humanity edged nearer toward destruction more so than ever during recent history. This transpired following the discovery that a US surveillance plane identified the fact that Soviet nuclear missile bases were under construction in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President John F Kennedy commanded a naval task force to establish a naval blockade encircling Cuba. What followed was nearly two weeks filled with unbearable tension. An Catastrophic Danger The threat remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a chain reaction of global atomic attacks and retaliatory strikes might have followed, casting humanity toward all-out ruination. The October crisis has been documented repeatedly, through volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel dimension to the story. The series is co-presented by Kennedy's relative alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the figures who, for two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of humanity in their hands. "What were the Russians thinking? What was the American side planning?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor of international affairs. For her, the beauty of the podcast lies in its attempt to question: "Why do people detest each other to the point they go against each other?" "It was not lost on me how profound the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, son of RFK, related to JFK and currently an author as well as attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight." The Brink of Catastrophe What is striking regarding this event was that, because it unfolded in the global spotlight, citizens globally were able to observe nearly in real time while it moved closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation was more imminent than anybody realised. "The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted an airstrike and a ground invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, which would have sunk our naval vessels as well as sunk America's primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth." The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them was pushing for action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew his missiles based in Turkey. The relief was immense, as was the sense of optimism. The Divergent Viewpoint Yet, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable globally. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following the crisis, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the USSR's school curriculum, which painted an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a scary day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are constantly fine or sunny." Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "I was informed what a great moment it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she adds. In the years to come, however, that perspective would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up America." An Unlikely Collaboration This podcast is remarkably even-handed and well produced that Nina jokes it almost made her forget the known the ending. This is, partly, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most momentous thing remains the involvement 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 would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva can do that, and be so warm with each other, has to be a sign of progress. "We are not the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, my uncle moved to America where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "However we were strangers before the podcast," adds Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along really well and now we are friends, something that is really great. Finally, following nearly 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our families are now allies, suggesting the world is more secure, somewhat." Modern Echoes with Current Perils Is that truly the case? Part of the reason this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living in a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn