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In February 2026, the United States and Israel initiated a war in the Middle East against Iran. Since then, the warring sides have oscillated between strikes, a fragile ceasefire, and the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz. Open hostilities resumed in mid-July. More recently, the Houthis in Yemen have threatened Saudi shipping through the Bab al-Mandab, raising the risk to shipping through that critical waterway.For the first webinar of The Atlantic Brief, War on the Rocks and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) present a dialogue on the Strait of Hormuz and the future of free navigation, exploring the consequences of the present conflict for the Middle East and for other maritime routes.Speakers:Vice Admiral (ret.) Andrew Burns, former fleet commander of the Royal Navy (2021 to 2025); RUSI Distinguished Fellow in Military Sciences.Nicholas Hopton, Former U.K. ambassador to Libya (2019 to 2021), Iran (2015 to 2018), Qatar (2013 to 2015), and Yemen (2012 to 2013); RUSI Distinguished Fellow in International Security.Rachel Ziemba, Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security; War on the Rocks contributorModerators:Jonathan Eyal, Ph.D., Associate Director, RUSI.Nicole Wiley, Membership Editor, War on the RocksImage: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC via Wikimedia Commons