'I believe in UFOs... and I've seen them': Former Canadian defence minister accuses American government of cover-up



He says he'd get fired for his views if in office today

Claims U.S. military had weapons to use against UFOs and that aliens can help us learn about climate change



He is on an advisory body to the Queen, works as an environmental campaigner and is credited with integrating Canada's armed forces.



But aside from all this, the ex-Canadian defence minister says UFOs are real, aliens have visited Earth and the U.S. government is covering up information about them.

Paul Hellyer says he would probably get fired for his views if he was still Canada's Minister of National Defense today, but is adamant he has seen UFOs himself.



Paul Hellyer: The ex-Canadian Minister of National Defense says he is convinced that UFOs are real and alleges the U.S. has covered up information on them

The 87-year-old, who is the longest-serving member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada, said he never discussed his views with top officials when he was in office.

‘This is the kind of thing that sometimes they don't tell politicians about,’ he said.



‘I have no doubt that there were probably people in my employ who would have been more knowledgeable than I was at the time.’

‘I got periodic reports on sightings and I looked at them very casually. It was decided that about 80 per cent of them were natural phenomena of one sort or another and the other 20 per cent roughly were unexplained and therefore unidentified.’

Mr Hellyer is presenting his views on UFOs this week at the International UFO Congress in Scottsdale, Arizona, and says he is ‘convinced’ of their existence.

‘We lived too long in a sense of isolation, thinking that Earth was the centre of the cosmos, that we were the only species and, therefore, probably the most advanced.'

‘And when we come to the realisation that we're not any of those things, then I think we should be aware of it (and) learn to live with it,' he told AOL News.



Proportions: Mr Hellyer believes about 80 per cent of sighting reports were natural phenomena and the other 20 per cent roughly were of UFOs

Mr Hellyer claims to have seen a UFO with his wife when spending last Thanksgiving near Toronto, and they stared at the sky for 20 minutes watching it moving.

Theory: Astronaut Edgar Mitchell has praised his writings on a 'shadow U.S. government' using alien technology

He told AOL: ‘By process of elimination, we determined it wasn't a star or satellite and it wasn't the space station, so there was really no explanation for it other than it was, in fact, a UFO. It looked like a star, but it manoeuvred in a way that stars don't.’

He believes the U.S. has developed new forms of energy at secret ‘black operation’ units using alien technology and that a ‘shadow government’ is behind this activity.

Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, founder of the Institute of Noetic Sciences research group, has described Mr Hellyer's theory as an 'important contribution' to literature.

‘His experience in government, his interest in exo-politics and the issues of sustainability of civilization are significant areas of current discourse,' he said.



Retired Army Colonel John Alexander, also speaking at this week’s conference, believes UFOs are real but says there has never been a cover-up.

Mr Hellyer added: ‘People keep talking about transparency and still not telling the truth, and this applies in various other areas as well as UFOs.

'It's just about time that we started getting open with each other and trying to get along and live together.’

He said he would 'probably be open-mouthed about it' and 'might get fired for it' if he talked about his opinions in office today.



He said in 2005 that the U.S. military was preparing weapons to use against aliens, and they 'could get us into an intergalactic war without us ever having any warning'.

Sighting: Mr Hellyer says he saw a UFO when spending last Thanksgiving near Toronto and he stared at the sky for 20 minutes watching it moving

He said two years later that governments should be using alternatives to fossil fuels from alien technology obtained during alleged UFO crashes to fight climate change.



Mr Hellyer was responsible in 1963 for creating the Canadian Armed Forces from the integration of the Royal Canadian army, navy and air force into one organisation.

He has also campaigned over issues such as monetary reform, the Middle East and the environment.

Mr Hellyer's website says that he is the 'first person of cabinet rank in the G8 group of countries to state unequivocally “UFO’s are as real as the airplanes flying overhead".'



Other public figures who have stated UFOs are of extra-terrestrial origin include former USSR leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Professor Stephen Hawking and Ronald Reagan.