USA20 February, 20262 min read
President Donald Trump Orders Release of UFO and Alien Files
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Directed Pentagon and federal agencies to identify and release UFO, UAP, and extraterrestrial files. Told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to begin identifying and releasing relevant government files.
75 outlets told this the same way.
Outlets did split on Trump Interrupted by Protesters at San Antonio Rally for Ken Paxton →
Order to release UAP records
On Feb. 19, 2026 President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social account that he was directing the Defense Department and other federal agencies to "identify and release" government documents relating to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) and unidentified flying objects (UFOs).
“Trump issued a broad Feb. 19, 2026 directive to the Defense Department and other agencies to locate and release files on extraterrestrial life, UAPs and UFOs, with no stated time frame or subject limits.”
He called the subject "highly complex, but extremely interesting and important" and said he was responding to "tremendous interest."
Several outlets record that he framed the order as instructing the "Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies" to "begin the process" of making the records public.
The move did not specify a timeline or the treatment of classified material.
Podcast exchange and reactions
The announcement followed a viral podcast exchange in which former president Barack Obama answered "They're real" in a rapid-response segment. Obama later clarified he had seen no evidence of contact and said he was speaking statistically. Trump publicly accused Obama of revealing "classified information" and told reporters he might "get [Obama] out of trouble by declassifying."
Trump also told reporters he did not know whether aliens are real. Coverage across outlets records these elements but varies in emphasis, with many noting Obama’s clarification and others foregrounding Trump’s accusation and his quip about declassification.
UAP controversies and findings
The directive arrived against a backdrop of renewed public and congressional interest, including leaked Navy videos in 2017, 2022 congressional hearings and a March 2024 Pentagon/AARO effort. According to multiple outlets, that March 2024 effort found no evidence that UAP represent alien technology and attributed many sightings to mundane causes such as spy planes, satellites or weather balloons.
“AARO’s cautious conclusions in 2023–June 2024 finding no evidence of extraterrestrial technology or beings in its reviewed reports.”
Analysts and some outlets also point to whistleblower claims and unresolved incidents, for example 2023 allegations of recoveries and reverse-engineering, that supporters say justify fuller disclosure. Officials and the Pentagon have disputed those assertions.
Political reactions to announcement
Al Jazeera, UPI and other outlets report lawmakers from both parties publicly welcomed greater transparency.
They named Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna and Democratic Sen. John Fetterman as supporters.
White House communications amplified the announcement on social platforms, with UPI noting Karoline Leavitt called it 'OUT OF THIS WORLD NEWS' on X.
At the same time, several outlets flagged questions about motive and timing, noting the move's broad language and absence of a procedural plan.
Some critics warned releases could be heavily redacted or politically timed.
Unclear Trump records plan
Most outlets note Trump provided no timetable, no list of subjects to be released, and did not specify whether genuinely classified materials would be declassified. Reporting therefore ranges from treating the announcement as a substantive transparency push to describing it as a high-profile, low-detail directive that may yield mundane, heavily redacted files. Observers quoted across the coverage warn that agencies must now assemble, vet and legally review records before any public release, leaving open whether the public will see anything beyond previously released pilot videos and routine incident reports.
“He did not say whether classified documents would be made public.”