(NewsNation) — Japan’s fascination with UFO/UAP has reached the halls of government, thanks to a new group that will make the investigation of UFO incidents a higher priority than it has been.

The Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Clarification League for Security-Oriented National Security is chaired by two members of parliament who say they have seen UFOs, also known as UAP.

The group’s mission is to press the government to track and investigate UFO data and share its information with the U.S. It calls the possibility of the phenomena a major potential threat to national security.

Reacting to formation of the new group, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters that, while the government has never confirmed a UFO sighting, it recognizes the national security implications.

“It’s stipulated that every effort should be made to report and analyze any unidentifiable objects in the air that may affect the defense and security of Japan,” Hayashi told reporters.

The announcement has been met with mixed reactions on Japanese social media. One post said “these politicians have nothing better to do, so they turn to UFOs. This is not in the public’s interest at all.”

Japan has long been a hotbed of UFO sightings. Residents of Kofu, at the foot of Mt. Fuji, hope to make their town a UFO tourist magnet with next year’s 50^th anniversary of what was labeled a major UFO incident.

On February 23, 1975, two boys playing near a vineyard claimed to see two orange flashing saucer-shaped craft, from which emerged a small being with a big head, long ears and fangs. Other local residents recounted similar descriptions.

“It scared the life out of me back then,” said Katsuhiro Yamahata, who was one of the two boys.

Officials in Kofu are planning to erect a monument at the site.