Following nearly destroying our planet, our families have become allies’: a gripping podcast from John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s descendants.
In October 1962, humanity came closer toward ruin than at any other point in the contemporary era. This happened following the discovery that a US reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Russian nuclear missile installations were being assembled on the island of Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of the United States. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy directed a naval task force to establish a maritime quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period constituted nearly 14 days of extreme stress.
An Unthinkable Danger
The danger remained obvious. If President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes would have ensued, casting civilization toward all-out destruction.
The Cuban missile crisis has been documented repeatedly, in volumes, films, as well as television programmes. But, in its latest installment, a prominent BBC World Service podcast titled "The Bomb" has brought a novel dimension to the story. It is jointly hosted by Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members belonging to the leaders who, over 13 days, held the destiny of humanity in their hands.
"What was the Russians thinking? What was the American side thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s descendant and a professor specializing in global relations.
For her, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to objectively ask: "Why do people detest each other to the point they oppose each other?"
"I am acutely aware how remarkable it is that individuals have the potential to be allies or else have the potential to be total enemies," adds Max Kennedy, son of Robert Kennedy, nephew of JFK and now a writer and attorney. "History shows this over and over in instances where countries have gone to war, demonstrating the sheer folly it is to engage in warfare."
The Precipice of Disaster
What is remarkable regarding this event was that, since it unfolded so publicly, people globally could watch almost as it happened while it crept towards disaster. However, the danger of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.
"Almost all officials in the White House wanted a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question the Russians on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon against the American ships, and that would have destroyed the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed our largest and most important fleet. And, we would have retaliated with massive retaliation which would have eradicated most life on the planet."
The fact this did not occur highlights the composure of both leaders, they managed to keep their heads while calmly negotiate when everyone around them demanded military action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island while Kennedy (a fact not publicly disclosed at the time) withdrew American similar weapons from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by a feeling of optimism.
A Different Perspective
Still, during those two weeks of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters came into the world shortly after these events, and Khrushcheva learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted an alternative picture of what happened.
"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a scary day," Khrushcheva notes. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware a great deal about it, because it was a tense situation, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that things are constantly wonderful or 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 resolve it, and didn’t start the war, which was a wonderful outcome," she adds. Later on, though, that interpretation would not be shared by all Russians. "For a long time in Russian politics, the crisis was viewed as a failure for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."
A Unlikely Partnership
This podcast is remarkably balanced , expertly crafted that Nina quips she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most momentous thing is the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be unthinkable that relatives of the heads of state of the United States and the USSR to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, must be seen as a symbol of progress.
"We are not the first," notes Nina. "After the dissolution of the USSR in 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," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame because we got along immediately and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Finally, following almost six decades of almost destroying the planet, our families have become allies, suggesting the world is more secure, a little bit."
Contemporary Echoes and Current Perils
Or is it? Part of the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we once again are living living through dark times. The Doomsday Clock stands nearer to midnight than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to comprehend
