Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said his department is working to comply with President Donald Trump's directive to identify and release government files related to UFOs, UAPs (unidentified anomalous phenomena), and extraterrestrial life.

The effort marks the administration's next step after Trump announced last week that agencies would begin a disclosure process.

At an "Arsenal of Freedom" tour stop Monday in Denver, Hegseth said that the department was "digging in" and would be in "full compliance" with Trump's order.

He did not provide a timeline for any release.

Hegseth also said he did not expect to be handling the issue and, when asked about extraterrestrial life, said he would review the material and "find out" alongside the public.

Hegseth also spoke at an Arsenal of Freedom tour stop in Louisville, Colorado, including a visit to Sierra Space, a Colorado-based space-defense manufacturer and engineering company.

Trump said on Thursday he would direct Hegseth and other agencies to begin identifying and releasing files related to "alien and extraterrestrial life," UAPs, and UFOs.

Trump's move is part of a government-wide disclosure effort, spurred by renewed public attention after former President Barack Obama discussed the statistical likelihood of life elsewhere in the universe.

In an interview published Feb. 14, in the lightning-round section, YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen asks, "Are aliens real?" and Obama responds, "They're real, but I haven't seen them."

In 2024, an unclassified Pentagon-linked report said many identified cases were ordinary objects and stated the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office had found no evidence of extraterrestrial beings, activity, or technology.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said declassified records will be posted on the National Archives website.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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