🔗 Share this article ‘After nearly destroying our world, the relatives are allies’: the thrilling audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s descendants. During the month of October 1962, the world edged closer toward annihilation more so than ever during recent history. This happened after a US reconnaissance plane identified that Soviet nuclear missile bases were being built on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was almost 14 days of impossible stress. An Unthinkable Danger The danger was clear. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series of worldwide nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, plunging mankind into all-out oblivion. This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through volumes, movies, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented element into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the figures who, over 13 days, held the fate of the planet within their grasp. "What were the Russians thinking? What was Washington thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations. For her, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can people hate one another to the point they go against one another?" "It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author and attorney. "We see this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to fight." The Precipice of Catastrophe What is striking about this event is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people worldwide could watch almost in real time as it moved towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of destruction was more imminent than most people realised. "Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated the naval vessels as well as destroyed our primary naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth." The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the missiles in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism. A Divergent Viewpoint Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva learned about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened. "You said your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly fine and sunny." Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she continues. Subsequently, however, that perspective was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America." A Unlikely Partnership This podcast is so balanced , expertly crafted that Nina quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of America and Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a symbol of progress. "Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages have become allies, suggesting the world is safer, somewhat." Modern Parallels with Present Perils Or is it? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we now find ourselves in dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp
During the month of October 1962, the world edged closer toward annihilation more so than ever during recent history. This happened after a US reconnaissance plane identified that Soviet nuclear missile bases were being built on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to establish a maritime quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was almost 14 days of impossible stress. An Unthinkable Danger The danger was clear. If President Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a series of worldwide nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, plunging mankind into all-out oblivion. This pivotal 1962 event has been documented endlessly, through volumes, movies, and television programmes. However, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented element into the story. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the figures who, over 13 days, held the fate of the planet within their grasp. "What were the Russians thinking? What was Washington thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations. For her, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "How can people hate one another to the point they go against one another?" "It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently an author and attorney. "We see this dynamic repeatedly in instances where nations enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid it is to fight." The Precipice of Catastrophe What is striking about this event is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people worldwide could watch almost in real time as it moved towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of destruction was more imminent than most people realised. "Virtually everyone in the White House were advocating for an airstrike and a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the naval blockade, undoubtedly the Russians on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated the naval vessels as well as destroyed our primary naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have eradicated most life on Earth." The fact it didn’t stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy at a time when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. Consequently, Khrushchev removed the missiles in Cuba while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles from Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism. A Divergent Viewpoint Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts were born shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva learned about it through the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened. "You said your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However in the Soviet Union, people were largely unaware a great deal regarding the crisis, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are constantly fine and sunny." Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "I was informed what a great moment for the USSR, because it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, and didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she continues. Subsequently, however, that perspective was not held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a defeat for Khrushchev, because he didn’t blow up America." A Unlikely Partnership This podcast is so balanced , expertly crafted that Nina quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, due to contributions from historians. Yet, really, the most significant thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be inconceivable for relatives of the leaders of America and Soviet Union would appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm with each other, must be seen as a symbol of progress. "Max and I aren't the first," smiles Nina. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children." "But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following nearly six decades of nearly annihilating the planet, our lineages have become allies, suggesting the world is safer, somewhat." Modern Parallels with Present Perils Or is it? Part of the reason this series seems so urgent is because we now find ourselves in dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to grasp