‘After nearly annihilating our planet, the relatives are friends’: a gripping podcast featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s relatives.
During October 1962, the world veered closer toward ruin than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired after an American surveillance plane found that Soviet atomic missile sites were being assembled in Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of the US mainland. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval blockade encircling the island. The ensuing period was nearly two weeks of impossible anxiety.
The Catastrophic Threat
The peril was palpable. If President Kennedy, or else his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on the other side, a series involving global nuclear attacks and counterstrikes could have followed, plunging humanity toward all-out ruination.
The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, through books, movies, as well as TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb presents an unprecedented dimension to this historical narrative. It is co-presented by Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives of the figures who, for two tense weeks, grasped the destiny of the world in their hands.
"What were the Kremlin considering? What was Washington considering?" asks Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant who is also a professor specializing in global relations.
In her view, the unique appeal of the podcast lies in its endeavor to question: "Why do nations detest each other and go against one another?"
"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that humans have the potential to be friends or else have the potential to be complete adversaries," adds Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author and attorney. "History shows this over and over when nations have gone to war, demonstrating the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."
A Precipice Towards Catastrophe
What is remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired so publicly, citizens around the world were able to observe almost in real time as it edged closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the danger of annihilation came closer than most people realised.
"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors were advocating for an airstrike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question Soviet forces on the ground would have fired a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would've obliterated our naval vessels as well as destroyed America's primary naval force. And, the U.S. would have retaliated with massive retaliation that would have ended most life on Earth."
The reality this did not occur is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in remain calm and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them were advocating military action. Consequently, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles from the Caribbean island while President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The sense of relief was palpable, as was a feeling of hope.
The Divergent Viewpoint
Still, for those 13 days in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world in the years following these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it through the Soviet education system, which painted a slightly different narrative of what happened.
"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always wonderful or positive."
Within the Khrushchev household, however, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she continues. In the years to come, however, that view was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying America."
A Unlikely Partnership
The Bomb is so even-handed , well produced so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, partly, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect is the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it was inconceivable for descendants of the leaders of America and the USSR would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of optimism.
"Max and I aren't the pioneers," smiles Nina. "After 1991, a relative moved to America and became great friends with the former president's family."
"However we had never met before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame because we connected really well and now we’re friends, which is really great. Ultimately, after almost 60 years since nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now allies, so I think global relations is safer, somewhat."
Contemporary Echoes with Present Perils
Or is it? One reason why this series feels so necessary is because we once again find ourselves in dark times. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, partly since world leaders don’t seem to be able to grasp