Donald Trump's election as US President marked a new and seismic chapter in the battle for disclosure about aliens and UFOs. While he addressed the issue during his first presidential term, from 2017 to 2021, his second stint in the White House has arguably proven to be the turning point. In February 2026, he ordered federal agencies to release government files related to UFOs - Unidentified Flying Objects - along with unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) and extraterrestrial life. He said this was because of the “tremendous interest” in the topic, although he insisted he did not know personally if aliens exist.
Trump's Stance and Motivation
The Republican leader said: “Well, I don't know if they're real or not. I don't have an opinion on it. I never talk about it. A lot of people do. A lot of people believe it.” Despite his insistence it was purely because of the public’s interest, he made the announcement hours after he accused former US President Barack Obama of disclosing “classified information” by suggesting that aliens were real. Mr Trump said: “I may get him out of trouble by declassifying.” Mr Obama later clarified that he had not seen evidence that aliens "have made contact with us". But, he said, "statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there".
The extent of how much this influenced Mr Trump’s decision is up for debate. But polling has found that most Americans believe that aliens exist. A YouGov survey in 2025 found that half of the US public also believes that extraterrestrials have visited Earth. Bill Diamond, the president and chief executive of the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in California, said: "We don’t want to think this is the only place in this extraordinarily and incomprehensibly large universe where life and intelligence and even technology have emerged. It sort of says about humans, 'We don't want to be alone.'"
Background of US Government UFO Studies
Although the approach adopted in 2026 differs from the stance taken by earlier administrations, US officials have been quietly studying the possibility of UFOs for decades. The Pentagon - the US defence department - previously studied recordings of aerial encounters with unknown objects as part of a programme from 2007 to 2012. Public interest in unidentified flying objects and the possibility of the government hiding secrets of extraterrestrial life reemerged in the public consciousness after a group of former Pentagon and government officials leaked Navy videos of unknown objects in 2017. The renewed scrutiny prompted Congress to hold the first hearings on UFOs in 50 years in May 2022. However, officials said that the objects, which appeared to be green triangles floating above a Navy ship, were likely drones. Following the hearings, the Pentagon promised more transparency on the topic. In July 2022 it created the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or AARO, which was intended to be a central place to collect reports of all military UFO encounters.
Release of Files and Public Response
By the time Mr Trump returned to office in January 2025, the issue was firmly in the public’s conscience. The first batch of documents was then released by the Trump administration in May 2026. US officials said that people could decide for themselves what they show. It seemingly proved to be a huge hit with the public. The White House claimed that the first release received more than a billion hits on the government website set up to store them. Mr Trump said it was part of an effort for “complete and maximum transparency”. He wrote: “Whereas previous Administrations have failed to be transparent on this subject, with these new Documents and Videos, the people can decide for themselves, ‘WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?’ Have Fun and Enjoy!”
Revelations from the Documents
The documents revealed that astronauts had close encounters with UFOs on the Moon. Apollo spacemen were so baffled by unexplained shapes in the dark sky above the lunar surface that they took photos. The tranche of documents, involving 161 files, revealed that during three of the only six Moon landings in history astronauts reported unexplained encounters. More strange sightings were reported on the Apollo 12 mission, the second Moon landing which launched months later in November 1969. Astronauts snapped photos of five different ‘unidentified phenomena’ from the surface of the Moon. An image released by the Department of War showed several bright lights looming in the black sky over the Moon’s surface. A transcript of conversations between astronauts on the Apollo 17 Moon mission in 1972 details them discussing mysterious objects drifting near the spacecraft during flight. A photo snapped from the Moon showed three lights hovering over the lunar surface.
Other documents included FBI images from New Year's Eve 1999 showing unidentified objects near US military aircraft, along with photos captured by military pilots of fast-moving objects streaking past planes mid-flight. One newly declassified Mission Report, known as a MISREP, described military personnel observing ‘several bright objects manoeuvring quickly west to east north-east’ before tracking one of them with an onboard targeting pod for 20 seconds. It said that the object suddenly dimmed and disappeared. One file also summarised statements from seven federal officers assigned to different teams who independently reported witnessing multiple UFOs across the western US over two days in 2023.
Second Batch of Videos and Testimony
The Pentagon released a second batch of UFO videos and first-hand testimony later the same month. The files stretched back decades and included a further 50 videos and documents, including first-hand testimony from civilians and military members. In one video clip from the Middle East in 2019, three UAPs were captured flying in formation over the Persian Gulf. In a separate video from 2022, another formation of four unidentified objects was seen flying past vessels on the water off Iran. Footage shot in 2021 over Syria also showed a mysterious object racing away at speed.
Reactions from Officials and Experts
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said in May 2026: “These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fuelled justified speculation - and it’s time the American people see it for themselves.” Republican Congressman Tim Burchett, who has repeatedly called for full disclosure, claimed the files represented a "drop in the bucket" compared to what was to come, although he thanked Mr Trump for “keeping his word" on transparency and disclosure. He has said he believes aliens exist, adding: “Some of the best-trained pilots in the world have described having close collisions with some sort of aircraft or apparatus, and so I think it’s time that they come clean.”
Meanwhile, others called for more openness. The Sol Foundation, a research group focused on UFOs, called for legislation that would force a “thorough” review of classified records. It said its aim was "providing Americans with the full truth about longstanding government knowledge and programs concerning technologies and vehicles not of human origin". The group said it wanted an "end to the decades of secrecy by which the American people were kept in the dark".
Skepticism and Criticism
But the move to release the files was not met with universal approval. Sean Kirkpatrick, a former director of the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, which investigates UFOs, claimed that there was nothing unexpected in the release of files. He warned that without analysis it will "only serve to fuel more speculation, conspiracy and arm-chair pseudoscience". In 2024, the AARO produced a report concluding there was no evidence any reported UFO sightings "represented extraterrestrial technology". Despite his claims, the US public’s appetite for the issue does not look like it will reduce any time soon - especially as the release of the government’s files provides so much material for alien hunters to pore over.
