🔗 Share this article ‘After nearly destroying our planet, the families have become friends’: the thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev’s relatives. In October 1962, the world edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point during the contemporary era. This happened following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet nuclear missile sites were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President JFK directed a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around the island. The next phase constituted almost a fortnight filled with extreme anxiety. The Unthinkable Danger The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging mankind into total destruction. The October crisis has been documented extensively, in books, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a novel perspective into this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the figures who, over two tense weeks, held the fate of the planet in their hands. "What was the Russians considering? What was the American side considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic of global relations. In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations hate each other and go against each other?" "I am acutely aware how remarkable it is that humans have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author and lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to fight." A Brink of Disaster What’s remarkable about this event was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people around the world could watch nearly as it happened while it crept closer to armageddon. Nonetheless, the danger of destruction came closer than anybody realised. "Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would've obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated all life on Earth." The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them were advocating military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope. The Divergent Viewpoint Still, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your parent remembers it, and it was a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always fine and positive." Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "They told me what a great moment it was, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, though, that view was not held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States." An Unprecedented Partnership The Bomb is so balanced and well produced so much so that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of the United States and USSR would appear side by side. That these two individuals can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a sign of hope. "Max and I aren't the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we had never met prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we connected really well and we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following almost six decades since nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now friends, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat." Contemporary Echoes with Current Dangers Or is it? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is that we now are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to grasp
In October 1962, the world edged nearer to annihilation than at any other point during the contemporary era. This happened following the discovery that a US surveillance aircraft identified that Soviet nuclear missile sites were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, President JFK directed a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around the island. The next phase constituted almost a fortnight filled with extreme anxiety. The Unthinkable Danger The danger remained obvious. Should President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic attacks followed by counterstrikes could have followed, plunging mankind into total destruction. The October crisis has been documented extensively, in books, films, and television programmes. However, for its third season, the BBC World Service podcast The Bomb has brought a novel perspective into this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members of the figures who, over two tense weeks, held the fate of the planet in their hands. "What was the Russians considering? What was the American side considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and an academic of global relations. In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can nations hate each other and go against each other?" "I am acutely aware how remarkable it is that humans have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author and lawyer. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, demonstrating the profound irrationality involved to fight." A Brink of Disaster What’s remarkable about this event was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people around the world could watch nearly as it happened while it crept closer to armageddon. Nonetheless, the danger of destruction came closer than anybody realised. "Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike followed by an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would've obliterated the aircraft carriers as well as sunk America's largest and most important fleet. And, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack that would have eradicated all life on Earth." The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, who managed to keep their heads while engaging in diplomacy at a time when everyone around them were advocating military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in Cuba and Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) removed American similar weapons from Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was the sense of hope. The Divergent Viewpoint Still, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable globally. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet education system, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened. "As you mentioned your parent remembers it, and it was a frightening day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was always fine and positive." Inside the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "They told me what a great moment it was, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start a global war, which was a positive thing," she adds. In the years to come, though, that view was not held by everybody. "For decades within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States." An Unprecedented Partnership The Bomb is so balanced and well produced so much so that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous aspect is the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable that relatives of the heads of state of the United States and USSR would appear side by side. That these two individuals can do that, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a sign of hope. "Max and I aren't the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we had never met prior to this project," adds Kennedy. "That is unfortunate because we connected really well and we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following almost six decades since nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now friends, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat." Contemporary Echoes with Current Dangers Or is it? One reason the reason this series seems so urgent is that we now are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight in its history, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to grasp