Following nearly annihilating our world, the relatives are allies’: the thrilling audio series from JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.
During the month of October 1962, the world veered closer toward annihilation more so than ever during the contemporary era. This occurred when an American reconnaissance aircraft identified the fact that Russian atomic weapon sites were being assembled in the island of Cuba, a mere 100 miles off the coast of the US mainland. In response, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to enact a naval blockade around Cuba. What followed was nearly a fortnight filled with unbearable tension.
An Catastrophic Threat
The threat remained obvious. Should Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a chain reaction involving worldwide nuclear attacks and retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting mankind into all-out ruination.
This pivotal 1962 event has been documented repeatedly, in books, movies, and TV documentaries. But, for its third season, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" introduces an unprecedented dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Khrushchev's descendant, relatives belonging to the figures who, over two tense weeks, held the destiny of humanity within their grasp.
"What were the Kremlin planning? What was the American side thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also a professor specializing in global relations.
For her, the strength of the show is its attempt to objectively ask: "How can people hate each other to the point they oppose one another?"
"I am acutely aware how profound the fact that people can be allies or can become complete enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and currently a writer and lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where nations enter into conflict, highlighting the profound irrationality it is to fight."
The Precipice of Disaster
What is notable about the Cuban missile crisis was that, since it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens around the world were able to observe almost in real time while it crept closer to catastrophe. Nonetheless, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.
"Almost all officials among Kennedy's advisors wanted a military strike and an invasion," explains Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked Cuba with the naval blockade, it is certain the Russians stationed there would have deployed a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed the naval vessels as well as sunk America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, we would have retaliated through an overwhelming counterattack that would have ended most life on Earth."
The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, they succeeded in keep their heads and engaging in diplomacy when many advisors around them were advocating action. Consequently, The Soviet premier removed the nuclear weapons in Cuba while President Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed then) removed his missiles based in NATO ally Turkey. The relief was immense, as was a feeling of hope.
A Different Perspective
Still, for those two weeks in October, the tension was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born in the years following these events, with Nina being taught about the crisis via the USSR's education system, which portrayed a slightly different version of events.
"You said your father remembers it, and it was a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union we were told that everything was constantly fine and sunny."
Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, because it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to resolve it, and avoided the war, seen as a wonderful thing," she adds. Later on, however, that view was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a setback for the Soviet leader, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."
A Unlikely Partnership
This podcast is remarkably even-handed and expertly crafted that Khrushcheva quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. But, really, the most groundbreaking aspect remains the involvement of the hosts themselves. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable for relatives of the leaders of America and the USSR to appear side by side. That these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of progress.
"Max and I aren't the first," notes Nina. "Following 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."
"However we were strangers prior to this project," adds Max. "Which is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Finally, following almost 60 years of almost destroying the world, our lineages are now friends, suggesting global relations is safer, somewhat."
Contemporary Parallels and Present Perils
Is that truly the case? One reason why The Bomb seems so urgent is because we now find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to midnight in its history, in part because world leaders appear not to be able to comprehend
