President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he is directing federal departments to begin releasing government records related to extraterrestrial life and unexplained aerial phenomena. The initiative responds to strong public interest in unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and other complex, little-understood phenomena, Bloomberg reported.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the effort would involve multiple agencies, including the Secretary of War, to identify and release “any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters.” The statement signals a formal process for reviewing and declassifying files tied to alien life and unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs).

Earlier on Thursday, Trump criticised former President Barack Obama for remarks made during a podcast about the possibility of extraterrestrial life. “He gave classified information, he’s not supposed to be doing that,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. Bloomberg reported that the president suggested he could “get Obama out of trouble” by declassifying the relevant documents.