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(NewsNation) — Retired Army Col. Karl Nell claims nonhuman intelligence not only exists and has been to Earth but has been actively interacting with humanity.

Nell made the statement during a live chat at the SALT iConnections conference, which is billed as a conference for “disruptive innovation” in finance and geopolitics.

Nell cited his previous experience on the Pentagon’s UFO/UAP task force while making the claim. He has previously suggested the government has agreed to hold back top-secret information for some time and suggested that failing to disclose it would be “catastrophic.”

Nell said the interactions between nonhuman intelligence and humanity is not new and has been ongoing. The term “nonhuman intelligence” is one that has been used recently by officials speaking about the possibility of alien life.

Nell has a long career with the Army, has worked for aerospace companies and was the former director of the UAP Task Force, which investigated anomalous phenomena for the Pentagon.

He isn’t the only senior figure to have come forward, with other senior figures like former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Christopher Mellon and retired Navy Admiral Tim Gallaudet also making many of the same points Nell did.

Interest in UFOs and extraterrestrials has spiked since former intelligence officer David Grusch came forward with claims the Pentagon is operating a secret UFO retrieval program.

Grusch said he had heard credible stories of the program from officials he spoke to during his time on the UAP Task Force. He said that not only is the program being kept secret from the American public, it is also being concealed from Congress.

The Pentagon has denied the allegations, and the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), which is now tasked with investigating UAP reports, issued a report that said there is no evidence that UAPs are alien in nature and there is no program to retrieve alien technology.

The agency did acknowledge the Kona Blue program, a proposed effort to reverse engineer alien technology, but said the program never got off the ground because no such technology was ever discovered.

While many scientists think that it’s probable alien life exists in the universe, mathematically speaking, government investigations into UFOs and extraterrestrials dating back to the 1940s have said there is no evidence that we have found them or they have found us.

Nevertheless, Grusch’s claims sparked a surge of interest in the subject and a congressional hearing. A bipartisan UFO Caucus has also formed in Congress, with lawmakers hearing several classified briefings.

Many, including de facto caucus leader Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., have been skeptical of the information offered in those briefings. Burchett has repeatedly suggested the government is purposefully siloing information and relying on private contractors to prevent Congress from getting the full picture of what is going on.

Nell was the latest official to come forward and say he believes Grusch’s claims, which he said were part of the evidence for his statement. He said skepticism and ridicule directed at those who believe in extraterrestrial life and contact are part of a disinformation campaign by the government.

When pressed as to why the government would keep that information secret, Nell said national security, potential social disruption and a lack of a plan on how to deal with the revelations were some of the motivating factors.

As to how the public would react to official confirmation of alien contact, it remains unseen. But UFOs have been a source of fascination for people for decades, and it seems many out there want to believe.