At a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix on Friday, former President Donald Trump said he will direct Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to release government records related to unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and unexplained aerial phenomena (UAPs).
Speaking to the crowd, Trump said he had instructed "the Secretary of War" to begin publishing files on UFOs and UAPs and suggested the audience would be particularly interested in the material.
"I recently directed the Secretary of War … to begin releasing government files relating to UFOs and unexplained aerial phenomena," Trump said. "And I figured this was a good crowd because I know you people — you’re really into that, I don’t know if I am."
He added that a review was already underway and that "many interesting documents" had been found, with the first releases set to arrive "very, very soon." The Hill reached out to the Department of Defense for comment.
Context and Reactions
Trump's announcement echoes a February post on his social platform, Truth Social, in which he said he was ordering the Department of Defense to publish records "related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters." He made the later comments after criticizing former President Barack Obama over alleged disclosures about alien life.
The Phoenix remarks follow calls from Republican lawmakers for greater transparency. Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) has urged the administration to release government files on extraterrestrials and UAPs. Burchett has led several UAP hearings since 2023 and cited testimony from former intelligence official David Grusch alleging a "multi-decade" U.S. program recovered alien spacecraft for reverse engineering — a claim the government has denied.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), chair of the House Oversight Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, told NewsNation she has used subpoena authority after the Pentagon missed an April 14 deadline to deliver dozens of classified UAP videos. In a March 31 letter, Luna requested 46 videos showing UAP formations recorded over Iran, the Persian Gulf, the East China Sea and near U.S. domestic airports. She said she will work with Hegseth to obtain the footage and argued the lack of disclosure presents a potential security risk to U.S. military installations and readiness.
Lawmakers and the public are watching for any upcoming releases to see what the documents reveal about sightings, investigations, and whether they point to foreign technology, sensor errors, or other explanations. The government has previously pushed back on claims of recovered extraterrestrial craft.
Note: The Hill sought comment from the Department of Defense regarding Trump’s announcement and related congressional inquiries.
