TLDR

  • President Trump has declared his intention to instruct the Department of Defense and other relevant bodies to disclose government records concerning extraterrestrials, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs).
  • This decision comes after former President Obama’s recent podcast remarks, where he stated that aliens are “real” but not housed at Area 51.
  • Trump has accused Obama of divulging classified information regarding extraterrestrial life.
  • The Pentagon recorded 757 new UAP reports from May 2023 to June 2024.
  • Both Trump and Obama maintain they have not personally witnessed evidence of extraterrestrial contact with Earth.

On Thursday, President Donald Trump declared his intention to instruct the Department of Defense and other governmental bodies to locate and make public official documents pertaining to alien existence, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and UFOs.

Trump conveyed this announcement via a post on Truth Social, attributing the decision to the “tremendous interest” surrounding the topic.

The directive encompasses records concerning unidentified aerial phenomena, unidentified flying objects, and “all other information linked to these highly intricate, yet exceptionally intriguing and significant, subjects,” as stated by Trump.

This declaration coincided with Trump’s accusation that former President Barack Obama had disclosed classified alien-related information during a recent public podcast interview.

While en route to Georgia aboard Air Force One, Trump informed reporters, “He extracted it from classified information… He’s not authorized to do that.”

Despite this accusation, Trump asserted that he personally has not encountered proof of alien existence, telling reporters, “I don’t know if they’re real or not.”

Obama’s remarks were made during an interview with podcast host Brian Tyler Cohen, which was released on Saturday. When questioned about the reality of aliens, Obama responded, “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them, and they’re not being kept in Area 51.”

Obama Clarifies His Position

Obama further stated that Area 51 contained “no underground facility,” unless “there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.”

Area 51, a classified U.S. Air Force installation in Nevada, has historically been the subject of conspiracy theories alleging government storage of extraterrestrial artifacts.

Subsequent to the podcast, Obama utilized Instagram to clarify his statements. He conveyed that the universe’s immense size makes extraterrestrial life probable, but affirmed that during his tenure as president, he observed “no evidence” of contact between extraterrestrials and Earth.

Obama had previously remarked that his primary inquiry upon assuming the presidency was, “Where are the aliens?”

Pentagon UAP Reports

The Pentagon has been monitoring UAP reports for a number of years. In late 2024, it disclosed 757 new UAP observations recorded between May 2023 and June 2024.

According to the report, 21 of these cases “warrant additional analysis” owing to their “anomalous characteristics and/or behaviors.”

The Pentagon’s report indicated that, to date, no evidence connects any of the sightings to extraterrestrial life.

In 2022, high-ranking military officials stated they had discovered no proof of extraterrestrials visiting or crash-landing on Earth.

Trump’s directive did not specify a timeframe for the release of these files or which particular documents would be disclosed.