When Russian missiles were discovered in Cuba in 1962, a standoff began. W5's Lloyd Robertson looks at how close we came to nuclear war. He examines not only the details that lead the world to the brink of devastation in 1962, but lessons that still apply today. Robertson travels to Havana to meet with a close confidant of Fidel Castro and member of the Cuban Central Committee. In Washington, he interviews the U.S. analyst who first spotted the Soviet Union's nuclear missiles on Cuban soil. He also interviews Sergei Khrushchev, son of the Chairman of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev, who watched the crisis unfold at his father's side. Included in the documentary are letters between American president John F. Kennedy and Khrushchev as they seek a way of resolving the crisis to avoid a global nuclear war.

Originally broadcast on CTV as an excerpt on the television program W5, Oct. 20, 2012. Title from container. Includes bonus W5 extended interview with Sergei Khrushchev.