In an address to the 42d Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, in 1987, former US President Ronald Reagan said:
In our obsession with antagonisms of the moment, we often forget how much unites all the members of humanity. Perhaps we need some outside, universal threat to make us recognize this common bond. I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world.
Although brief, this allusion to aliens provides an intriguing insight into President Reagan’s thinking.
Being President of the United States, he potentially had access to classified information that the general public does not. Did he follow his interests and use his position to get answers? Unfortunately, we don’t really know.
There is mention of a UFO sighting Reagan had in the book UFOs: Myths, Conspiracies and Realities by John B Alexander. The book talks about a plane Reagan was in being followed by a big bright light which later sped away. It alleges that Reagan even discussed this with a reporter at the Wall Street Journal though there’s no reference to it ever being published by them.
It’s also been said elsewhere that Reagan and Gorbachev agreed to set aside their differences if there was ever an alien invasion of Earth. This implies that Gorbachev too may have been interested in them. Which makes you wonder – how many other world leaders are?