From Washington to Paris, from Berlin to London, from nuclear facilities to our military bases, has the European sky become a theater of unidentified operations? The US Congressional hearings on UAP in 2023 and 2024, coupled with recent flying objects incursions of unknown origins over sensitive sites in Europe, sound a clear warning that Europe's strategic autonomy can no longer ignore these phenomena. The European Union needs to establish a stronger framework for cooperation in the collection, analysis and sharing of information on UAPs, integrate UAP in EU legislation and fund research and innovation, in order to guarantee our security and sovereignty.
European strategic autonomy has become a leitmotif in Brussels and in capitals across the continent. Whether in defense, technology, or space, the European Union claims to want to control its own destiny and no longer depend exclusively on outside powers. Nevertheless, an emerging field continues to be largely overlooked in this quest for autonomy: that of Unidentified Aerospace Phenomena (UAP). Long mocked or relegated to the fringes, this subject now stands out as a security and scientific sovereignty issue that no serious power can afford to ignore.
The United States published annual official reports since 2021 stating the existence of several dozen, then hundreds UAP, and highlighting the real risks these unexplained aerospace phenomena pose for national security and air safety (Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, June 25, 2021). As summarized by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, now President Trump’s Secretary of State, “There’s stuff flying in our airspace and we don’t know who it is and it’s not ours. So we should know who it is, especially if it’s an adversary that’s made a technological leap” (Politico, June 23, 2021). In this context, Europe cannot remain idle. To reinforce genuine strategic autonomy, the EU must engage seriously, transparently, and proactively on the UAP issue.
What are UAP, and why are they important?
“The more we learn about UAP, the less we understand them,” the ex-Senator Harry Reid said in 2021. This former Senate Majority Leader initiated, together with two other senators and former military officers, a classified UAP research program launched in 2007 and funded with 22 million dollars in secret congressional funds: the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program (AAWSAP). Since December 2017, this program, conflated with the Pentagon’s AATIP project, made headlines around the world.
Whether UAP result from a technological leap made by geopolitical adversaries, natural phenomena distorting visual perceptions, visitors from another dimension, or technology from another world, UAP encompass any object or aerospace phenomenon observed in the sky (or in space) that cannot be immediately identified. Contrary to popular belief, this is not merely about fanciful stories: numerous astronauts, civilian and military pilots, air traffic controllers, and radar sensors have documented phenomena over the decades that defy conventional explanation. Some of these observations have nearly led to collisions narrowly avoided, creating a genuine aviation safety issue. Others raise geostrategic questions: could they be linked to unknown foreign technologies, or even illicit surveillance activities?
NATO and the EU have recently faced unexpected aerial incursions. Since 2014, more than a hundred overflights of nuclear power plants and nuclear sites in France by unidentified drones have highlighted the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to unknown aerial objects. Hearings were held in the French Senate but they were unable to determine who were behind these drones and what the intentions may have been. More recently by the end of 2024, “drone swarms” have been reported above military bases and urban areas in Europe and North America (The Guardian, 13 dec 2024). Also in these cases the authorities have not been able to explain the nature and origin of these ‘drone swarms’. These incidents demonstrate that the boundary between UAP and conventional threats (such as hostile drones) is blurred: in both cases, these are objects of uncertain origin, not immediately identified, potentially dangerous, and requiring a coordinated response by authorities.
Ignoring UAP would, therefore, entail costs. On the one hand, it leaves pilots and operators of critical infrastructure unprepared for puzzling aerial events. On the other hand, it creates a gap in our overall security system: a “blind spot” that malicious actors could exploit. Allowing unexplained phenomena to multiply without an analytical framework and without counter measures invites potential strategic surprises. Conversely, serious engagement with this subject also offers an opportunity for scientific and technological advancement, stimulating research in cutting-edge fields (sensors, artificial intelligence for image analysis, astrophysics, etc.).
Europe lagging behind in a strategic domain
While our allies are making progress, the European Union is significantly behind on the UAP issue. In the United States, beyond the aforementioned report, the Pentagon created a specialized office in 2022 (AARO, All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office) responsible for collecting and analyzing UFO reports from the military and pilots, and even NASA launched an independent UAP study in 2023. Canada, Australia, and Japan — where a cross-party parliamentary working group was formed in June 2024 — are also beginning to structure data collection and research on these phenomena, in collaboration with the United States.
In Europe, only France has had an official dedicated body for many years (the CNES’s GEIPAN, which collects testimonies and conducts scientific investigations into reported UAP). Elsewhere, mainly volunteer civilian organizations have gathered observation reports, without institutional support or international coordination. However, some recent initiatives show budding progress: in the Netherlands, the Dutch Safety Board (OVV) now accepts UAP reports from pilots, aware that anything crossing the airspace can affect safety (UAP Coalition Netherlands). At the European Parliament, a historic first meeting on UAP took place in March 2024 at the initiative of a visionnary MEP, aiming to destigmatize this longstanding taboo subject within the institutions.
Despite these developments, there is still no EU-wide or harmonized policy on UAP. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) does not have a specific protocol for reporting UAP. The European Air Safety Data Space does not explicitly include UAP within its scope. And while the European Commission is preparing new legislation on space activities for 2024, there is no mention of UAP in that framework (UAP Check). As a result, the EU risks being sidelined from a global geopolitical trend that is nevertheless crucial, depending instead on information from Washington or elsewhere — contradicting its aspiration to strategic autonomy.
Integrating UAP into the European space strategy for security and defence
Inaction is no longer an option. It is time to fully incorporate UAP issues into European security, defense, and space policies, consistent with the EU’s recent announcements on space legislation (Commissioner Kubilius's speech at the European Space Conference, 28 Janv 2025) and rearmament efforts (Euractiv, 5 March 2025). Brussels has expressed its intention to strengthen the resilience of its space assets and to fill capability gaps in the face of new threats (EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence - European Commission). The first Space Strategy for Security and Defence, presented in 2023, stresses that space is a competitive domain where Europe must protect its interests and bolster its autonomy (L’Union européenne se dote d’une stratégie spatiale pour la défense). Including UAP in this equation would be a logical next step, addressing a blind spot in Europe’s strategic vision. As one expert warned for instance, turning a blind eye to UAP amounts to “ignoring the potential impact of UAP could leave a critical blind spot in our energy defense strategy.” (News - UAP Coalition Netherlands).
Concretely, several actions can be taken immediately at the EU level:
Establishing a European mechanism for data collection and analysis: Create a European center (or network) dedicated to gathering UAP reports from civilian and military aviation in Member States, as well as from meteorological and space services, and conducting scientific analysis. Such an information-sharing process would encourage reporting without stigma and enable more precise identification of phenomena, whether they are of human or natural origin.
Integrating UAP into existing regulations and programs: Adapt European aviation safety regulations to explicitly include UAP reporting by pilots and air traffic control. Similarly, incorporate monitoring of unidentified aerial objects into the missions of the European Space Surveillance and Tracking center (SSA/SST) to better protect satellites and critical infrastructure on the ground from any erratic or intruding objects.
Funding research and innovation: Allocate resources through the Horizon Europe program or the European Defence Fund for multidisciplinary UAP study. This means supporting projects involving for example astrophysicists, aeronautical engineers, meteorologists, psychologists (for testimony analysis), and defense specialists. Better understanding these phenomena will contribute both to security (by distinguishing real threats from harmless anomalies) and to advancing scientific knowledge.
Increased international cooperation: Put the UAP issue on the agenda of transatlantic dialogues and international space cooperation. The United States, in particular, has amassed significant experience and data on the subject; the European Union and its members would benefit from exchanging with them on an equal footing while providing their own contributions from European territory. This would enhance Europe’s strategic autonomy and reinforce its leadership in new geostrategic fields. Similarly, encouraging information sharing among allies (NATO, UN) on unexplained aerial phenomena would strengthen collective security in the face of inherently cross-border risks.
These measures reflect the recommendations put forward by European civil society organizations focused on UAP. Fifteen associations from around ten EU countries launched an unprecedented call in late 2024 for the European Union to urgently address the UAP issue (UAP Check, Nov 25 2024). In that appeal, they specifically requested the measures outlined above: the establishment of a European process for data collection and analysis, the integration of UAP into regulations, research funding, and strengthened international cooperation (UAP at EU level - a proposal for action Oct 24 2024). European institutions must heed this grassroots message and draw inspiration from it.
Time to act and strengthen European cooperation
In light of current geopolitical upheavals, European strategic autonomy will only be achieved if the Union can anticipate and address all security issues, including those that fall outside conventional frameworks. Unidentified aerial phenomena are no longer science fiction but an observed reality that challenges our ability to understand and protect our skies. Confronted with this fact, inaction would be the worst possible response.
The European Union has all the resources it needs to become a global leader in a responsible and scientific approach to UAP: cutting-edge aerospace industries, renowned researchers, extensive multinational cooperation experience, agencies and organizations such as ESA, EASA, Eurocontrol that could be mobilized. What is needed now is a clear political will to coordinate these resources and fill the existing gap.
At a time when the EU is announcing its intention to expand its ambitions in defense and space, the moment is ideal to launch a European initiative on UAP. Equipping Europe with a strategy and the means to study and manage these phenomena will contribute to the security of its citizens, the independence of our capacity to assess risks, and the advancement of knowledge. Europe’s sovereignty, security, and scientific credibility are at stake. No more excuses: the time to act is now.
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This article is published simultaneously in 13 different languages and in 14 nations
[Top image by Pasquale Russo, CISU]
