US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has responded to President Trump’s directive to declassify all government records on UFOs and potential alien life. During an event for the Department of War’s ‘Arsenal of Freedom’ tour, Hegseth stated his commitment to uncovering the truth alongside the public.
Hegseth’s Direct Comments
Speaking on Monday, the 45-year-old secretary emphasized full compliance with the executive order. “I did not have that on my bingo card at all,” Hegseth remarked. “We’ve got our people working on it right now. I don’t want to oversell how much time it will take, right? We’re digging in. We’re going to be in full compliance with that executive order, eager to provide that for the president.”
He declined to provide a timeline for the Pentagon and intelligence agencies to release information on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), sightings of which date back to the 1940s across the US. When asked about his belief in alien existence, Hegseth replied: “We’ll see. I get to do the review and find out along with all of you.”
Congressional Involvement
Florida Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, leading the House Oversight Committee’s task force on UAP declassification, announced that incoming documents will appear on the US National Archives website.
Trump issued the order on February 19, shortly after criticizing former President Barack Obama. Obama had stated in a February 14 podcast interview with Brian Tyler Cohen that aliens exist but are not held at Area 51. The next day, Obama clarified on social media: “Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there.” He described his response as fitting the rapid-fire question format.
Trump labeled Obama’s remarks a mishandling of classified information. Aboard Air Force One that day, he told reporters: “I don’t know if they’re real or not. I can tell you he gave classified information. He made a big mistake.”
Broader Developments
The directive marks the first broad presidential push to publicize data on unidentified spacecraft and non-human intelligence. The US government has long denied physical evidence of extraterrestrial visits, despite numerous UFO videos.
Representative Eric Burlison of Missouri, part of the congressional UAP oversight, received White House approval to visit Area 51 and other UFO-linked sites. In a January 30 interview, Burlison noted the administration’s directive to the Department of War: “The extent to which they’ve been involved is literally just saying to the Department of Defense that ‘we’re backing his request. Do what you can to make it happen.'”
Congress has heard whistleblower testimony alleging 80-year cover-ups of recovered UFOs and alien remains. Trump previously cited military pilots’ accounts of gravity-defying encounters. During a 2024 podcast, he pledged: “Sure, I’ll do that. I would do that. I’d love to do that. I have to do that.”
Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law, revealed he has a prepared speech on UFOs and extraterrestrial life, potentially timed for the Roswell incident’s 79th anniversary on July 8 or the UN General Assembly in September.
