Government Investigations and Disclosure: Perspectives from U.S. and French Experts
On-site reporting: Lucca, Italy, 10-11 October 2026
Reporting and writing: Ryoko Kuwata (SPACE FRONTIER)
Why Have UAP Become a Matter of National Security?
The international UFO/UAP conference “WORLD SUMMIT UFO/UAP” took place in Lucca, Italy, on October 10–11, 2026.
Part 1 introduced the researchers and policy figures who gathered from around the world, and the efforts to expand UAP disclosure—long driven primarily by developments in the United States—into an international undertaking.
In Part 2, we examine the relationship between UAP, national security, government investigations and transparency through the professional backgrounds and public testimony of U.S. and French specialists who attended the conference.
For many years, UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena), often discussed under the earlier term UFO, were associated with reports of unidentified flying objects and questions about extraterrestrial life.
In recent years, however, a more immediate policy question has come to the fore: How should governments respond when unidentified phenomena are observed in national airspace or near military facilities?
Whether such observations ultimately involve unfamiliar natural phenomena, sensor errors, civilian aircraft or advanced foreign technology, they may still warrant investigation for reasons of aviation safety and defense.
Moreover, information gathered by military and intelligence agencies often includes classified material. How can governments balance the protection of national security with the public’s right to know and the obligation to provide an account of their actions?
The UAP issue is closely connected to these fundamental challenges facing modern societies.
Luis Elizondo: A Former Pentagon Official Calling for Government Transparency
Luis Elizondo, who attended the Lucca conference, is a former U.S. Department of Defense official and an internationally recognized figure in debates over UAP investigations and disclosure.
Elizondo previously worked on highly sensitive national-security matters within the U.S. government. Since leaving government service, he has advocated greater transparency regarding UAP and stronger congressional oversight.
On November 13, 2024, he appeared as a witness before a U.S. House Oversight and Accountability subcommittee at a hearing titled “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth.”
The hearing addressed the management of UAP-related information by the Department of Defense and intelligence agencies, classification practices and government accountability. In his written testimony, Elizondo made far-reaching claims about UAP-related technology and secret programs, while criticizing excessive classification and the compartmentalization of information across government agencies.
Not all of these claims have been independently verified through publicly available evidence. Witness testimony must be distinguished from facts officially confirmed by government authorities. Nevertheless, when a former government official testifies before Congress and elected representatives examine those claims, the process serves an important function in democratic oversight.
UAP disclosure is therefore not simply about identifying unexplained phenomena. It also concerns what information governments hold, who is allowed to access it, and the procedures governing classification and disclosure.
The system of information governance itself is under scrutiny.
SPACE FRONTIER Special Interview
During the Lucca conference, SPACE FRONTIER conducted an individual interview with Luis Elizondo lasting approximately 50 minutes.
The interview was recorded as a joint reporting project with French science journalist Charles-Maxence Layet and is planned for release at a later date.
Further details will be shared when the interview is published.
Robert Salas: Testimony Concerning a Nuclear Missile Base
Another notable participant from a national-security perspective was Robert Salas, a retired U.S. Air Force captain.
In 1967, during the Cold War, Salas was serving at a nuclear missile facility associated with Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana.
He has testified that, after security personnel reported seeing an unidentified flying object, several nuclear missiles became temporarily inoperable.
Salas has spoken publicly about the incident for many years and has called for investigations into a possible relationship between UFO phenomena and nuclear weapons facilities.
The incident remains a subject of debate, including how contemporary records and witness accounts should be interpreted.
Even if an operational malfunction and an unidentified-object sighting were reported around the same time, that does not establish a causal connection between them.
Nevertheless, when an unidentified object is reported near a nuclear weapons installation, investigating its origin is a significant national-security concern.
Today, the development of unmanned aircraft, electronic warfare, surveillance systems and artificial intelligence has made the analysis of anomalies near military facilities increasingly complex.
The priority should not be to rush toward an explanation, but to establish systems that receive reports appropriately, preserve objective records and permit later reassessment.
Salas’s testimony offers one historical case through which to consider that need.
France: Nearly Half a Century of Government-Linked UAP Investigations
France offers an institutional approach different from that of the United States.
In 1977, GEPAN was established within the French space agency, the Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES), to study unidentified aerospace phenomena.
The organization subsequently became SEPRA in 1988 and was reorganized in 2005 as GEIPAN (Groupe d’Études et d’Informations sur les Phénomènes Aérospatiaux Non identifiés).
GEIPAN’s principal responsibilities today include collecting sighting reports, conducting scientific analysis, preserving records and providing information to the public. Its investigations draw on expertise from the gendarmerie, police, aviation authorities, meteorology and scientific and technical fields.
A particularly important feature is its classification of investigated cases and the publication of information wherever possible. GEIPAN distinguishes between cases that have been explained, those for which an explanation is considered likely, those that cannot be analyzed because information is insufficient, and those that remain unexplained after investigation.
Crucially, an “unexplained” classification does not, by itself, indicate an extraterrestrial origin. Some cases lack sufficient data; others remain unresolved despite the availability of several observations.
Cases should therefore be assessed individually, according to the quality of the evidence and the findings of the investigation.
The French approach provides an example of how unexplained phenomena can be examined through sustained public-sector investigation, with records accumulated for wider society.
Jean-Jacques Velasco: Unexplained Phenomena Through the Lens of Government Research
Jean-Jacques Velasco of France also participated in the Lucca conference. He previously headed GEPAN and SEPRA within CNES and spent many years investigating unidentified aerospace phenomena.
A defining feature of the French investigative approach is its effort, wherever possible, to combine witness accounts with meteorological data, aircraft movements, astronomical phenomena and instrument records. Many reports can be explained through known phenomena, while some remain unresolved even after detailed examination.
Drawing on his experience in government-linked investigations, Velasco has written and spoken extensively about unexplained phenomena.
His personal views as a former official should not, however, be confused with the current official positions of CNES or GEIPAN.
That distinction matters whenever the statements of former government specialists are reported.
The French experience illustrates that researchers need not begin with a predetermined conclusion about the origin of an unexplained phenomenon. There is value in documenting what can and cannot be explained and preserving the possibility of renewed examination as science and technology advance.
The United States and France: Different Institutions, Shared Challenges
A comparison of U.S. and French approaches reveals important institutional differences.
In the United States, national-security structures—including the Department of Defense, intelligence agencies and congressional oversight—play a central role.
In 2022, the Department of Defense established the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) to address UAP reporting and analysis. AARO analyzes cases reported by military and government agencies, consolidates information and reports to Congress. In its 2024 historical review, the office stated that it had found no evidence confirming the existence of extraterrestrial technology in the cases it examined.
France, by contrast, has continued investigations and public disclosure through CNES, including reports submitted by civilians.
While the U.S. system tends to emphasize national security and congressional oversight, the French system is notable for scientific investigation and the development of a public archive.
These approaches are not inherently incompatible.
Protecting classified national-security information and advancing scientific investigation are objectives that should be pursued together. Explaining government findings and making information public where possible are also important for public trust.
The UAP issue does not call for the indiscriminate release of all information.
Disclosure that reveals the locations of military installations, surveillance capabilities or intelligence-collection methods could create security risks. Excessive classification, however, can obstruct scientific scrutiny and democratic oversight.
What should be protected, what should be disclosed, and who should oversee those decisions?
This is one of the central questions of UAP transparency. It also underscores the importance of building institutions through cooperation among government, industry and academia, and of establishing mechanisms to improve and oversee those institutions.
Scientific Verification and Transparency: Another Perspective from NASA
NASA’s work offers another important reference point for the scientific investigation of UAP.
In September 2023, NASA published the final report of an independent UAP study team. Its purpose was not to determine the identity of individual sightings, but to consider what data should be collected and what scientific methods should be used in future investigations.
NASA explained that the limited availability of high-quality observational data makes it difficult to reach firm scientific conclusions in many cases. This highlights the need to consider observation conditions, sensor characteristics and multiple independent sources of data, rather than relying on testimony alone.
Understanding unfamiliar phenomena scientifically requires reproducibility, transparency, reliable data and independent verification. Equally important is an environment in which witnesses feel able to report observations without hesitation and investigators receive those reports without prejudice.
What Japan Needs: Investigative Capacity and International Cooperation
What can Japan learn from the experiences of the United States and France?
In Japan, a cross-party parliamentary group, formally known in Japanese as the “Parliamentary League for the Clarification of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena from a National Security Perspective” (commonly referred to as the UFO Parliamentary League), has discussed national-security responses to UAP, government investigative structures and international information sharing.
At the October 2026 conference in Italy, Japan was represented among the participants by Yoshiharu Asakawa, a former member of the House of Representatives and an assistant to the parliamentary league’s chair, and his interpreter Ryo Kikuchi, identified in the Japanese source article as affiliated with the Japan UAP Research Institute.
Japan has accumulated substantial expertise in space development, aerospace technology, observation systems, defense and disaster response. To apply those capabilities, it is important first to clarify how reports of unidentified phenomena should be received, which institutions should investigate them and what standards should govern their classification.
Beyond the United States, Japan should also compare and examine the investigative systems of European countries, including France, and develop international cooperation on information sharing and institutional design.
International cooperation on UAP need not begin with agreement on a particular hypothesis. It can begin with practical matters that countries can examine together: reporting systems, observational data, analytical methods and standards for public disclosure.
Greater international information sharing could deepen scientific understanding of unidentified phenomena while also supporting cooperation on aviation safety and national security.
How Should Society Respond to the Unknown?
The Lucca conference once again highlighted that UAP, as an unresolved subject, concerns not only science and security but also government transparency, democratic oversight, international cooperation and public trust.
Making information public is not the same as guaranteeing its accuracy. Likewise, the existence of unexplained observations does not mean their origin has been established. Governments, research institutions, legislatures, media organizations and civil society must therefore fulfill their respective responsibilities and build discussions grounded in evidence.
There is another question worth considering: the attitude humanity itself brings to the unknown.
Can we approach what we do not understand with intelligence, curiosity and humility rather than fear, speculation and conflict? Can we share knowledge across national and disciplinary boundaries, respect different positions and deepen our understanding of unfamiliar possibilities?
SPACE FRONTIER will continue to follow developments in UAP science, policy, national security, international cooperation and human rights, connecting Japan with the wider world. We will also explore the evolution of human consciousness, values, culture and ideas that may lie beyond these debates.
How might our response to unexplained phenomena reshape our worldview? As we imagine a future beyond Earth’s familiar boundaries, in which humanity participates in a wider cosmic civilization, what kind of society will we build?
We will continue to explore these questions from the perspectives of science and policy, as well as humanity and civilization.
Next in the Series | UAP & JAPAN #04
2026 Italy International Conference Report | Part 3 of 3
From UAP to Cosmic Civilization: International Cooperation, the Evolution of Human Consciousness and Questions for the Future
How might the debate over unexplained phenomena change humanity’s worldview and values? The final installment explores possibilities for society and civilization in the space age, spanning science, culture, philosophy and international cooperation.
Related Resources
U.S. Congress | UAP Hearing (November 13, 2024)
Luis Elizondo | Written Testimony to Congress (2024)
U.S. Department of Defense / AARO | Historical Record Report, Volume I (2024)
U.S. Department of Defense / AARO | Official Resources
NASA | UAP Independent Study (2023)
SPACE FRONTIER | UAP & JAPAN #01
Editorial note: This article draws on publicly available government documents, congressional testimony, research-institution materials and on-site reporting. Claims made by individual experts are distinguished from facts confirmed by government or scientific institutions. No unpublished material from individual interviews is included.
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SPACE FRONTIER is an independent, non-partisan and non-religious private initiative connecting Japan and the world through reporting, research and international dialogue in space policy, emerging technologies and UAP-related issues.