US President Donald Trump has said he plans to review and release government records on aliens and UFOs, suggesting that recent comments by former president Barack Obama about extraterrestrial life could risk exposing sensitive intelligence. Trump said he has directed the Pentagon and other agencies to identify and declassify related files.
“Based on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs),” Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.
Trump suggested Obama’s remarks, if drawn from presidential intelligence briefings, could risk exposing national security information, though he cited no evidence.
Why the fuss over aliens and UFOs suddenly?The debate reignited after Obama appeared on a podcast hosted by political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen, where he said aliens were “real” during a rapid-fire question segment.
“They’re real,” Obama said, adding: “But I haven’t seen them. And, they’re not being kept in Area 51.”
A the clip went viral, Obama released a statement on Instagram: “I was trying to stick with the spirit of the speed round, but since it’s gotten attention let me clarify. Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there. But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we’ve been visited by aliens is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!”
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said, “I don’t know if they’re real or not,” adding that he “may get him out of trouble by declassifying”.
Meanwhile, Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, suggested earlier this week that the president had prepared a speech on aliens to be delivered at the “right time”.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt laughed off the claim when asked about it, saying a speech on aliens “would be news to me”.
What’s Area 51 and what is kept there?
Secrecy surrounding Area 51, a highly classified Cold War-era facility in Nevada, has long fuelled speculation among UFO enthusiasts.
In 2013, the CIA formally acknowledged the base’s existence, though it dismissed claims involving alien crashes, extraterrestrial encounters or fabricated moon landings.
Previously declassified records identified the roughly 8,000-square-mile installation by name after decades during which US officials declined to confirm it publicly.
Historically, the site has been used to test advanced military aircraft, including early high-altitude reconnaissance planes in the 1950s and later stealth bomber programmes.
In recent years, US defence agencies have acknowledged unexplained aerial sightings — now termed unidentified anomalous phenomena — but maintain that most incidents ultimately have conventional explanations.
