diff --git a/scripts/meta-arm-release.py b/scripts/meta-arm-release.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..518da03fc168
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/meta-arm-release.py
@@ -0,0 +1,731 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Arm Limited
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+"""Create, publish and announce meta-arm release tags."""
+
+import argparse
+from datetime import date, datetime
+import os
+import re
+import shlex
+import shutil
+import subprocess
+import sys
+import tempfile
+from dataclasses import dataclass
+from email.message import EmailMessage
+from pathlib import Path
+
+SUPPORT_URL = 'https://docs.yoctoproject.org/ref-manual/release-process.html'
+VERSION_RE = re.compile(r'^(\d+)\.(\d+)(?:\.(\d+))?$')
+PLATFORM_TAG_RE = re.compile(r'^[A-Z][A-Z0-9_-]*-[0-9]{4}\.[0-9]{2}\.[0-9]{2}$')
+DEFAULT_LTS = ('scarthgap', 'wrynose')
+
+
+class ReleaseError(Exception):
+    pass
+
+
+def run(*argv, check=True):
+    result = subprocess.run(argv, text=True, stdout=subprocess.PIPE,
+                            stderr=subprocess.PIPE)
+    if check and result.returncode:
+        raise ReleaseError(f"{' '.join(argv)}: {result.stderr.strip()}")
+    return result
+
+
+def git(*args, check=True):
+    return run('git', *args, check=check)
+
+
+def series_number(version):
+    match = VERSION_RE.fullmatch(version)
+    if not match or match.group(3) is not None or int(match.group(2)) > 3:
+        raise ReleaseError(f'Invalid initial release version: {version}')
+    return int(match.group(1)) * 4 + int(match.group(2))
+
+
+def series_from_number(number):
+    return f'{number // 4}.{number % 4}'
+
+
+def previous_series(version):
+    number = series_number(version)
+    if number == 0:
+        raise ReleaseError('No previous release version')
+    return series_from_number(number - 1)
+
+
+def next_patch(version):
+    match = VERSION_RE.fullmatch(version)
+    if not match:
+        raise ReleaseError(f'Invalid version: {version}')
+    return f'{match.group(1)}.{match.group(2)}.{int(match.group(3) or 0) + 1}'
+
+
+def platform_tag(name, release_date=None):
+    """Build a platform tag, validating both platform name and calendar date."""
+    if not re.fullmatch(r'[A-Za-z][A-Za-z0-9_-]*', name):
+        raise ReleaseError(f'Invalid platform name: {name}')
+    if release_date is None:
+        release_date = date.today().strftime('%Y.%m.%d')
+    try:
+        datetime.strptime(release_date, '%Y.%m.%d')
+    except ValueError as exc:
+        raise ReleaseError('--date must be a valid YYYY.MM.DD date') from exc
+    if not re.fullmatch(r'\d{4}\.\d{2}\.\d{2}', release_date):
+        raise ReleaseError('--date must use YYYY.MM.DD')
+    return f'{name.upper()}-{release_date}'
+
+
+@dataclass
+class BranchStatus:
+    branch: str
+    series: str
+    last_tag: str | None
+    commits: int | None
+    next_tag: str
+
+
+class ReleaseManager:
+    def __init__(self, remote='yoctoproject', recipient='meta-arm@lists.yoctoproject.org',
+                 lts=DEFAULT_LTS, execute=False, edit=False, as_of=None, force_lts=False, mailer='auto'):
+        self.remote = remote
+        self.recipient = recipient
+        self.lts = tuple(lts)
+        self.execute = execute
+        self.edit = edit
+        self.as_of = as_of
+        self.force_lts = force_lts
+        if mailer not in ('auto', 'sendmail', 'mutt'):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Invalid mailer: {mailer}')
+        self.mailer = mailer
+        self._branches = None
+        self._series = None
+
+    def branch_ref(self, branch):
+        return f'refs/remotes/{self.remote}/{branch}'
+
+    def branches(self):
+        if self._branches is None:
+            refs = git('for-each-ref', '--format=%(refname:strip=3)',
+                       f'refs/remotes/{self.remote}/').stdout.splitlines()
+            self._branches = sorted(b for b in refs if b not in ('master', 'testing') and '/' not in b)
+            if not self._branches:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'No release branches under {self.remote}')
+        return self._branches
+
+    def require_branch(self, branch):
+        if branch not in self.branches():
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Unknown or excluded upstream branch: {branch}')
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def ancestor(older, newer):
+        return git('merge-base', '--is-ancestor', older, newer, check=False).returncode == 0
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def tag_commit(tag):
+        result = git('rev-parse', '--verify', '-q', f'refs/tags/{tag}^{{commit}}', check=False)
+        return result.stdout.strip() if result.returncode == 0 else None
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def tag_object(tag):
+        result = git('rev-parse', '--verify', '-q', f'refs/tags/{tag}', check=False)
+        return result.stdout.strip() if result.returncode == 0 else None
+
+    def numeric_tags(self):
+        return [tag for tag in git('tag', '-l').stdout.splitlines() if VERSION_RE.fullmatch(tag)]
+
+    def discover_series(self):
+        """Use tags that lie on a branch, not inherited tags on its fork history.
+
+        A branch's initial release can be at the fork itself; in that case,
+        resolve shared tags by proximity and fail closed if ambiguous.
+        """
+        if self._series is not None:
+            return self._series
+        branches = self.branches()
+        tags = self.numeric_tags()
+        forks = {}
+        for branch in branches:
+            result = git('merge-base', self.branch_ref(branch), self.branch_ref('master'))
+            forks[branch] = result.stdout.strip()
+
+        # For every series, assign it to the branch whose tip is nearest
+        # to its latest reachable tag. Ties cannot establish ownership.
+        candidates = {}
+        for tag in tags:
+            match = VERSION_RE.fullmatch(tag)
+            series = f'{match.group(1)}.{match.group(2)}'
+            for branch in branches:
+                if not self.ancestor(f'refs/tags/{tag}', self.branch_ref(branch)):
+                    continue
+                distance = int(git('rev-list', '--count',
+                                   f'{tag}..{self.branch_ref(branch)}').stdout)
+                current = candidates.setdefault(series, {})
+                if branch not in current or distance < current[branch][0] or (
+                        distance == current[branch][0] and
+                        (int(match.group(3) or 0) > current[branch][1])):
+                    current[branch] = (distance, int(match.group(3) or 0), tag)
+
+        owners = {}
+        for series, choices in candidates.items():
+            ranked = sorted((v[0], -v[1], b) for b, v in choices.items())
+            if not ranked:
+                continue
+            # If multiple branches are tied, avoid guessing ownership.
+            if len(ranked) > 1 and ranked[0][:2] == ranked[1][:2]:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'Ambiguous ownership for {series}: {ranked[0][2]}, {ranked[1][2]}')
+            owners[series] = ranked[0][2]
+
+        by_branch = {}
+        for series, branch in owners.items():
+            if branch in by_branch:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'Multiple version series appear to belong to {branch}')
+            by_branch[branch] = series
+
+        if not by_branch:
+            raise ReleaseError('No release version anchors found')
+
+        # Infer only unreleased branches, after the highest established series.
+        missing = [b for b in branches if b not in by_branch]
+        if missing:
+            latest = max(series_number(s) for s in by_branch.values())
+            ordered = sorted(missing, key=lambda b: int(git('show', '-s', '--format=%ct', forks[b]).stdout))
+            for earlier, later in zip(ordered, ordered[1:]):
+                if not self.ancestor(forks[earlier], forks[later]) or forks[earlier] == forks[later]:
+                    raise ReleaseError(f'Cannot order unreleased branches: {earlier}, {later}')
+            for branch in ordered:
+                latest += 1
+                by_branch[branch] = series_from_number(latest)
+        self._series = by_branch
+        return by_branch
+
+    def latest_tag(self, branch):
+        series = self.discover_series()[branch]
+        choices = []
+        for tag in self.numeric_tags():
+            match = VERSION_RE.fullmatch(tag)
+            if f'{match.group(1)}.{match.group(2)}' != series:
+                continue
+            if self.ancestor(f'refs/tags/{tag}', self.branch_ref(branch)):
+                choices.append((int(match.group(3) or 0), tag))
+        return max(choices)[1] if choices else None
+
+    def status(self, branch):
+        self.require_branch(branch)
+        series = self.discover_series()[branch]
+        last = self.latest_tag(branch)
+        if not last:
+            return BranchStatus(branch, series, None, None, f'Initial {series}')
+        count = int(git('rev-list', '--count', f'{last}..{self.branch_ref(branch)}').stdout)
+        return BranchStatus(branch, series, last, count, next_patch(last) if count else '-')
+
+    def show_status(self, branches):
+        print(f'{"Branch":<18} {"Version":<9} {"Last-tag":<14} {"Commits":<10} Next-tag')
+        for branch in branches:
+            state = self.status(branch)
+            print(f'{branch:<18} {state.series:<9} {state.last_tag or "(none)":<14} '
+                  f'{str(state.commits) if state.commits is not None else "-":<10} {state.next_tag}')
+
+    def create_tags(self, branch, version, ref, kind):
+        self.require_branch(branch)
+        if not VERSION_RE.fullmatch(version):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Invalid tag version: {version}')
+        target = git('rev-parse', '--verify', f'{ref}^{{commit}}').stdout.strip()
+        if not self.ancestor(target, self.branch_ref(branch)):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'{ref} is not on {branch}')
+        for tag in (version, f'yocto-{version}'):
+            old = self.tag_commit(tag)
+            if old and old != target:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'{tag} already points to another commit')
+        print(f'{branch}: {version} -> {target[:12]} ({kind})')
+        for tag in (version, f'yocto-{version}'):
+            if self.tag_object(tag):
+                print(f'  Exists: {tag}')
+            elif self.execute:
+                git('tag', '-s', tag, '-m', f'{kind} for Yocto Project {version} ({branch})', target)
+                print(f'  Created: {tag}')
+            else:
+                print(f'  DRY RUN: create {tag}')
+        self._series = None
+
+    def release(self, branch, version):
+        self.require_branch(branch)
+        expected = self.discover_series()[branch]
+        if version != expected:
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Expected {expected} for {branch}, got {version}')
+        ref = self.branch_ref(branch)
+        if self.as_of:
+            ref = git('rev-list', '--first-parent', '--before', f'{self.as_of} 23:59:59',
+                      '-1', ref).stdout.strip()
+            if not ref:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'No commit on {branch} before {self.as_of}')
+        self.create_tags(branch, version, ref, 'Initial release')
+
+    def update(self, branches):
+        created = []
+        for branch in branches:
+            state = self.status(branch)
+            if not state.last_tag:
+                print(f'{branch}: initial release {state.series} missing; skipping')
+            elif not state.commits:
+                print(f'{branch}: no new commits; skipping')
+            else:
+                self.create_tags(branch, state.next_tag, self.branch_ref(branch), 'Update')
+                created.append((branch, state.next_tag))
+        return created
+
+    def platform(self, name, ref, release_date=None):
+        """Create a signed platform tag without requiring release branch discovery."""
+        tag = platform_tag(name, release_date)
+        target = git('rev-parse', '--verify', f'{ref}^{{commit}}').stdout.strip()
+        existing = self.tag_object(tag)
+        if existing:
+            if self.tag_commit(tag) != target:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'{tag} already exists at another commit')
+            print(f'Platform tag already exists: {tag} -> {target[:12]}')
+            return tag
+        print(f'Platform: {name}\nCommit:   {target[:12]}\nTag:      {tag}')
+        if self.execute:
+            message = f'{name.upper()} platform release ({tag.rsplit("-", 1)[1]})\n\nRelease of the {name} platform at commit {target}.'
+            git('tag', '-s', tag, '-m', message, target)
+            print(f'Created signed tag: {tag}')
+        else:
+            print(f'DRY RUN: Would create signed tag {tag}.')
+        return tag
+
+    def tags_for(self, branches):
+        series_map = self.discover_series()
+        selected = branches or self.branches()
+        result = set()
+        for branch in selected:
+            self.require_branch(branch)
+            series = series_map[branch]
+            for tag in self.numeric_tags():
+                match = VERSION_RE.fullmatch(tag)
+                if f'{match.group(1)}.{match.group(2)}' != series:
+                    continue
+                if not self.ancestor(f'refs/tags/{tag}', self.branch_ref(branch)):
+                    continue
+                paired = f'yocto-{tag}'
+                if not self.tag_commit(paired) or self.tag_commit(paired) != self.tag_commit(tag):
+                    raise ReleaseError(f'Missing or mismatched paired tag: {paired}')
+                result.update((tag, paired))
+        return sorted(result)
+
+    def push(self, selections=(), all_tags=False):
+        """Push selected tags, or all recognized release tags, without overwrites.
+
+        For compatibility, a selection may be an existing release branch.
+        Explicit tag names need not match the recognized tag patterns.
+        """
+        if all_tags:
+            tags = git('tag', '-l').stdout.splitlines()
+        elif selections:
+            tags = set()
+            for selection in selections:
+                if self.tag_object(selection):
+                    tags.add(selection)
+                elif selection in self.branches():
+                    tags.update(self.tags_for((selection,)))
+                else:
+                    raise ReleaseError(f'Unknown tag or release branch: {selection}')
+            tags = sorted(tags)
+        else:
+            tags = [t for t in git('tag', '-l').stdout.splitlines()
+                    if VERSION_RE.fullmatch(t)
+                    or (t.startswith('yocto-') and VERSION_RE.fullmatch(t[6:]))
+                    or PLATFORM_TAG_RE.fullmatch(t)]
+        if not tags:
+            print('No matching release tags')
+            return
+        remote = {}
+        for line in git('ls-remote', '--tags', '--refs', self.remote).stdout.splitlines():
+            sha, ref = line.split()
+            remote[ref.removeprefix('refs/tags/')] = sha
+        pending = []
+        published = 0
+        for tag in tags:
+            local = self.tag_object(tag)
+            old = remote.get(tag)
+            if old is None:
+                pending.append(tag)
+            elif old == local:
+                published += 1
+            else:
+                raise ReleaseError(f'Tag conflict on {self.remote}: {tag} local={local} remote={old}')
+        print(f'Upstream: {self.remote}\nAlready published: {published}\nNew tags: {len(pending)}')
+        for tag in pending:
+            print(f'  {tag}')
+        if pending and self.execute:
+            git('push', '--atomic', self.remote,
+                *(f'refs/tags/{tag}:refs/tags/{tag}' for tag in pending))
+            print(f'Published {len(pending)} tags.')
+        elif not self.execute:
+            print('DRY RUN: No tags pushed.')
+
+    def lts_description(self, branch):
+        if branch in self.lts or self.force_lts:
+            opening = ('This is a Long Term Support (LTS) release. meta-arm generally aims '
+                       'to follow the Yocto Project\'s LTS support lifecycle on a best-effort '
+                       'basis, with maintenance primarily focused on bug fixes and security '
+                       'fixes. CI testing is performed on supported configurations as resources permit.')
+        else:
+            opening = ('This is NOT a Long Term Support (LTS) release. meta-arm generally aims '
+                       'to follow the Yocto Project\'s release support lifecycle on a best-effort '
+                       'basis. For non-LTS releases, this means approximately seven months of '
+                       'limited maintenance, primarily consisting of bug fixes and security fixes, '
+                       'with minimal CI testing.')
+        if self.lts:
+            names = ', '.join(self.lts[:-1]) + (' and ' if len(self.lts) > 1 else '') + self.lts[-1]
+            opening += f'\n\nThe currently supported LTS branches are {names}.'
+        return opening + ('\n\nFor more information about the Yocto Project\'s release '
+                          f'lifecycle and LTS policy, see:\n{SUPPORT_URL}')
+
+    def announcement(self, branch, version):
+        self.require_branch(branch)
+        series = self.discover_series()[branch]
+        if version != series and not re.fullmatch(re.escape(series) + r'\.\d+', version):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'{version} does not belong to {branch} ({series})')
+        if not self.tag_commit(version) or self.tag_commit(version) != self.tag_commit(f'yocto-{version}'):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Missing or mismatched release tag pair: {version}')
+        if not self.ancestor(f'refs/tags/{version}', self.branch_ref(branch)):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'{version} is not on {branch}')
+        lts_text = self.lts_description(branch)
+        if version == series:
+            previous = previous_series(version)
+            if not self.tag_commit(previous):
+                raise ReleaseError(f'Missing previous initial release tag {previous}')
+            count = git('rev-list', '--count', f'{previous}..{version}').stdout.strip()
+            subject = f'meta-arm {branch} release'
+            body = (f'meta-arm has released the {branch} support branch, tagged as {version}.\n\n'
+                    f'{lts_text}\n\nThis release contains {count} commits since the previous '
+                    f'Yocto Project release, {previous}.')
+        else:
+            patch = int(version.rsplit('.', 1)[1])
+            previous = series if patch == 1 else f'{series}.{patch - 1}'
+            if not self.tag_commit(previous) or not self.ancestor(previous, version):
+                raise ReleaseError(f'Missing or non-ancestor previous tag: {previous}')
+            log = git('log', '--reverse', '--format=%h %s', f'{previous}..{version}').stdout.strip()
+            count = int(git('rev-list', '--count', f'{previous}..{version}').stdout)
+            if not count:
+                raise ReleaseError('No commits in update release')
+            dates = git('log', '--reverse', '--format=%cs', f'{previous}..{version}').stdout.splitlines()
+            first, last = dates[0], git('log', '-1', '--format=%cs', version).stdout.strip()
+            subject = f'meta-arm {branch} update'
+            body = (f'meta-arm has released an updated {branch} support tag, {version}.\n\n'
+                    f'{lts_text}\n\nThis release contains {count} commits between {first} and {last}.\n\n'
+                    'Changes included in this release:\n\n' +
+                    '\n'.join('  ' + line for line in log.splitlines()))
+        body += (f'\n\nThe release is available under the {version} and yocto-{version} tags.\n'
+                 'Both tags are GPG signed.\n\nThanks,\nThe meta-arm team')
+        return subject, body
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def editor_command():
+        # git var GIT_EDITOR already respects GIT_EDITOR, VISUAL, EDITOR and core.editor.
+        result = git('var', 'GIT_EDITOR', check=False)
+        return result.stdout.strip() if result.returncode == 0 and result.stdout.strip() else 'vi'
+
+    def edit_message(self, subject, body):
+        original = f'Subject: {subject}\n\n{body}\n'
+        with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory(prefix='meta-arm-release-') as directory:
+            path = Path(directory) / 'announcement.txt'
+            path.write_text(original, encoding='utf-8')
+            editor = self.editor_command()
+            print(f'Opening announcement in {editor}...', flush=True)
+            # Interactive editors must inherit stdin, stdout, and stderr.
+            # Git editor settings may contain shell quoting and arguments.
+            try:
+                subprocess.run(
+                    ['sh', '-c', f'{editor} "$1"', 'editor', str(path)],
+                    check=True,
+                )
+            except subprocess.CalledProcessError as exc:
+                raise ReleaseError('Editor exited unsuccessfully; email not sent') from exc
+            edited = path.read_text(encoding='utf-8')
+        if edited == original:
+            print('Email unchanged; not sending.')
+            return None
+        header, separator, text = edited.partition('\n\n')
+        if not separator or not header.startswith('Subject: '):
+            raise ReleaseError('Edited email must begin with Subject: followed by a blank line')
+        new_subject = header.removeprefix('Subject: ').strip()
+        if not new_subject or '\r' in new_subject or '\n' in new_subject or not text.strip():
+            raise ReleaseError('Invalid edited email subject or body')
+        return new_subject, text.rstrip('\n')
+
+    def mail_backend(self):
+        """Resolve the requested mailer without silently changing forced choices."""
+        sendmail = shutil.which('sendmail')
+        if not sendmail and os.access('/usr/sbin/sendmail', os.X_OK):
+            sendmail = '/usr/sbin/sendmail'
+        mutt = shutil.which('mutt')
+
+        if self.mailer == 'sendmail':
+            return sendmail
+        if self.mailer == 'mutt':
+            return mutt
+        return sendmail or mutt
+
+    def send(self, subject, body):
+        backend = self.mail_backend()
+        if not backend:
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Requested mailer {self.mailer!r} is unavailable' if self.mailer != 'auto'
+                               else 'Neither sendmail nor mutt is available')
+        if os.path.basename(backend) == 'mutt':
+            subprocess.run([backend, '-s', subject, '--', self.recipient],
+                           input=body + '\n', text=True, check=True)
+        else:
+            message = EmailMessage()
+            message['To'] = self.recipient
+            message['Subject'] = subject
+            message.set_content(body)
+            subprocess.run([backend, '-t', '-i'], input=message.as_bytes(), check=True)
+
+    def email(self, branch, version):
+        subject, body = self.announcement(branch, version)
+        if self.edit:
+            changed = self.edit_message(subject, body)
+            if changed is None:
+                return
+            subject, body = changed
+        print(f'\nSubject: {subject}\n\n{body}\n')
+        if not self.execute:
+            print('DRY RUN: Email not sent.')
+            return
+        for tag in (version, f'yocto-{version}'):
+            output = git('ls-remote', '--tags', '--refs', self.remote, f'refs/tags/{tag}').stdout
+            entries = dict(line.split()[::-1] for line in output.splitlines())
+            if entries.get(f'refs/tags/{tag}') != self.tag_object(tag):
+                raise ReleaseError(f'{tag} is not published identically on {self.remote}')
+        self.send(subject, body)
+        print('Email submitted successfully.')
+
+    def check(self):
+        print('meta-arm release environment\n' + '-' * 48)
+        errors = 0
+        inside = git('rev-parse', '--is-inside-work-tree', check=False).returncode == 0
+        print(f'Git repository:       {"OK" if inside else "FAILED"}')
+        errors += not inside
+        url = git('remote', 'get-url', self.remote, check=False)
+        print(f'Upstream remote:      {self.remote} ({url.stdout.strip() or "missing"})')
+        reachable = url.returncode == 0 and git('ls-remote', '--heads', self.remote, check=False).returncode == 0
+        print(f'Upstream reachable:   {"OK" if reachable else "FAILED"}')
+        errors += not reachable
+        master = git('rev-parse', '--verify', '-q', f'{self.branch_ref("master")}^{{commit}}', check=False).returncode == 0
+        print(f'Master branch:        {"OK" if master else "MISSING"}')
+        errors += not master
+        if master:
+            print(f'Release branches:     {len(self.branches())}')
+        identity = (git('config', 'user.name', check=False).stdout.strip(),
+                    git('config', 'user.email', check=False).stdout.strip())
+        print(f'Git identity:         {identity[0]} <{identity[1]}>' if all(identity)
+              else 'Git identity:         NOT CONFIGURED')
+        errors += not all(identity)
+        signing = git('config', 'user.signingkey', check=False).stdout.strip()
+        print(f'GPG signing key:      {signing or "Git default (not verified)"}')
+        mailer_path = self.mail_backend()
+        mailer_note = ' (forced)' if self.mailer != 'auto' else ' (auto)'
+        print(f'Email delivery:       {(mailer_path or "Not available") + mailer_note}')
+        print(f'Email recipient:      {self.recipient}')
+        print(f'Editor:               {self.editor_command()}')
+        print(f'LTS branches:         {", ".join(self.lts)}')
+        print('Environment ready.' if not errors else f'Environment check failed: {errors} error(s).')
+        return not errors
+
+
+class FriendlyArgumentParser(argparse.ArgumentParser):
+    """Display the curated usage page without argparse's duplicate sections."""
+
+    def format_help(self):
+        return self.description + '\n'
+
+
+def parser():
+    """Build a CLI with a compact, example-driven help page."""
+    help_text = """\
+Usage: meta-arm-release.py COMMAND [ARGUMENTS] [OPTIONS]
+
+Commands:
+  check                       Check the release environment
+  status [BRANCH...]          Show release status and pending commits
+  release BRANCH VERSION      Create initial signed release tags (x.y)
+  update [BRANCH...]          Tag branches containing new commits (x.y.z)
+  tag BRANCH VERSION REF      Tag a specific historical commit
+  platform NAME REF           Create a signed platform release tag
+  push [TAG|BRANCH...]        Publish missing release tags to upstream
+  email BRANCH VERSION        Preview or send an announcement
+  all BRANCH VERSION          Initial release, updates, push and announcements
+
+Options:
+  -h, --help, -?              Display this help
+  -n, --dry-run               Preview operations (default)
+  -x, --execute               Perform requested operations
+  -e, --edit                  Edit announcements using your configured editor
+  --lts                       Treat specified release as LTS
+  --as-of YYYY-MM-DD          Select historical first-parent commit by date
+  --date YYYY.MM.DD           Platform tag date (default: today)
+  --remote NAME               Upstream remote (default: yoctoproject)
+  --email-to ADDRESS          Override announcement recipient
+  --mailer {auto,sendmail,mutt}  Select email delivery method (default: auto)
+  --lts-branches "A B"        Set supported LTS branches
+
+Examples:
+  meta-arm-release.py check
+  meta-arm-release.py status
+  meta-arm-release.py status scarthgap wrynose
+  meta-arm-release.py release blacksail 6.1
+  meta-arm-release.py release blacksail 6.1 --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py update scarthgap whinlatter --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py tag wrynose 6.0 COMMIT --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py platform corstone1000 HEAD
+  meta-arm-release.py platform corstone1000 HEAD --date 2026.10.01 --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py push CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01 --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py push
+  meta-arm-release.py push --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py email blacksail 6.1
+  meta-arm-release.py email blacksail 6.1 --edit
+  meta-arm-release.py email blacksail 6.1 --edit --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py email blacksail 6.1 --mailer mutt --execute
+  meta-arm-release.py all blacksail 6.1 --execute
+
+Notes:
+  * Dry-run is the default; --execute does not ask for confirmation.
+  * Email previews require no mail program; automatic delivery prefers
+    sendmail and falls back to mutt. Use --mailer to force a backend.
+  * Editor selection follows Git configuration (including VISUAL/EDITOR).
+  * Release branches must exist upstream; branches containing '/' are skipped.
+  * Existing tags are never overwritten; only missing tags are pushed.
+  * Push without arguments discovers Yocto and platform release tags.
+  * Push operations use only the configured upstream remote.
+  * The script never checks out branches.
+
+Environment variables:
+  META_ARM_RELEASE_REMOTE      Override upstream remote
+  META_ARM_RELEASE_EMAIL       Override announcement recipient
+  META_ARM_LTS_BRANCHES        Space-separated LTS branches
+  META_ARM_MAILER              auto, sendmail, or mutt
+"""
+    p = FriendlyArgumentParser(
+        prog='meta-arm-release.py',
+        description=help_text,
+        formatter_class=argparse.RawDescriptionHelpFormatter,
+        add_help=False,
+    )
+    p.add_argument('-h', '--help', '-?', action='help', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--execute', '-x', action='store_true', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--dry-run', '-n', action='store_true', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--edit', '-e', action='store_true', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--lts', action='store_true', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--as-of', metavar='YYYY-MM-DD', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--date', metavar='YYYY.MM.DD', help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--remote', default=os.getenv('META_ARM_RELEASE_REMOTE', 'yoctoproject'),
+                   help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--email-to', default=os.getenv('META_ARM_RELEASE_EMAIL', 'meta-arm@lists.yoctoproject.org'),
+                   help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--mailer', choices=('auto', 'sendmail', 'mutt'),
+                   default=os.getenv('META_ARM_MAILER', 'auto'), help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    p.add_argument('--lts-branches', default=os.getenv('META_ARM_LTS_BRANCHES', 'scarthgap wrynose'),
+                   help=argparse.SUPPRESS)
+    sub = p.add_subparsers(dest='command', required=True, metavar='COMMAND')
+    sub.add_parser('check', add_help=False)
+    q = sub.add_parser('status', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branches', nargs='*')
+    q = sub.add_parser('release', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branch')
+    q.add_argument('version')
+    q = sub.add_parser('update', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branches', nargs='*')
+    q = sub.add_parser('tag', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branch')
+    q.add_argument('version')
+    q.add_argument('ref')
+    q = sub.add_parser('platform', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('name')
+    q.add_argument('ref')
+    q = sub.add_parser('push', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('selections', nargs='*')
+    q = sub.add_parser('email', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branch')
+    q.add_argument('version')
+    q = sub.add_parser('all', add_help=False)
+    q.add_argument('branch')
+    q.add_argument('version')
+    return p
+
+
+def main(argv=None):
+    p = parser()
+    # Support global options either before or after the subcommand.
+    args = list(sys.argv[1:] if argv is None else argv)
+    if not args or any(token in ('-h', '--help', '-?') for token in args):
+        p.print_help()
+        return 0
+    globals_with_value = ('--as-of', '--date', '--remote', '--email-to', '--lts-branches', '--mailer')
+    globals_flags = ('--execute', '-x', '--dry-run', '-n', '--edit', '-e', '--lts')
+    front, rest = [], []
+    i = 0
+    while i < len(args):
+        token = args[i]
+        if token in globals_with_value:
+            if i + 1 >= len(args):
+                p.error(f'{token} requires a value')
+            front.extend(args[i:i+2]); i += 2
+        elif token in globals_flags:
+            front.append(token); i += 1
+        else:
+            rest.append(token); i += 1
+    ns = p.parse_args(front + rest)
+    if ns.email_to.find('\n') >= 0 or ns.email_to.find('\r') >= 0:
+        p.error('Invalid email recipient')
+    if ns.date and ns.command != 'platform':
+        p.error('--date only applies to platform')
+    if ns.edit and ns.command not in ('email', 'all'):
+        p.error('--edit only applies to email and all')
+    if ns.as_of and not re.fullmatch(r'\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}', ns.as_of):
+        p.error('--as-of requires YYYY-MM-DD')
+    manager = ReleaseManager(ns.remote, ns.email_to, ns.lts_branches.split(),
+                             ns.execute and not ns.dry_run, ns.edit, ns.as_of, ns.lts, ns.mailer)
+    if ns.command == 'check':
+        return 0 if manager.check() else 1
+    if git('rev-parse', '--is-inside-work-tree', check=False).returncode:
+        raise ReleaseError('Not in a Git repository')
+    if ns.command == 'status':
+        manager.show_status(ns.branches or manager.branches())
+    elif ns.command == 'release':
+        manager.release(ns.branch, ns.version)
+    elif ns.command == 'update':
+        manager.update(ns.branches or manager.branches())
+    elif ns.command == 'tag':
+        manager.require_branch(ns.branch)
+        expected = manager.discover_series()[ns.branch]
+        if ns.version != expected and not re.fullmatch(re.escape(expected) + r'\.\d+', ns.version):
+            raise ReleaseError(f'Wrong version series for {ns.branch}: {ns.version}')
+        manager.create_tags(ns.branch, ns.version, ns.ref, 'Release')
+    elif ns.command == 'platform':
+        manager.platform(ns.name, ns.ref, ns.date)
+    elif ns.command == 'push':
+        manager.push(ns.selections)
+    elif ns.command == 'email':
+        manager.email(ns.branch, ns.version)
+    elif ns.command == 'all':
+        manager.release(ns.branch, ns.version)
+        created = [(ns.branch, ns.version)]
+        created += manager.update([b for b in manager.branches() if b != ns.branch])
+        if manager.execute:
+            manager.push()
+            for branch, version in created:
+                manager.email(branch, version)
+        else:
+            print('DRY RUN: No tags created, pushed or emails sent.')
+    return 0
+
+
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    try:
+        sys.exit(main())
+    except (ReleaseError, subprocess.CalledProcessError) as error:
+        print(f'ERROR: {error}', file=sys.stderr)
+        sys.exit(1)
diff --git a/scripts/test_meta_arm_release.py b/scripts/test_meta_arm_release.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..8c0d3c39a211
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/test_meta_arm_release.py
@@ -0,0 +1,220 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Arm Limited
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+"""Offline unit and integration tests for meta-arm-release.py."""
+
+import importlib.util
+import os
+import subprocess
+import tempfile
+import unittest
+from pathlib import Path
+from unittest.mock import patch
+
+SCRIPT = Path(__file__).with_name('meta-arm-release.py')
+spec = importlib.util.spec_from_file_location('meta_arm_release', SCRIPT)
+release = importlib.util.module_from_spec(spec)
+import sys
+sys.modules[spec.name] = release
+spec.loader.exec_module(release)
+
+
+class VersionTests(unittest.TestCase):
+    def test_initial_release_sequence(self):
+        self.assertEqual(release.previous_series('6.0'), '5.3')
+        self.assertEqual(release.previous_series('6.1'), '6.0')
+        self.assertEqual(release.series_from_number(release.series_number('5.3') + 1), '6.0')
+
+    def test_patch_version(self):
+        self.assertEqual(release.next_patch('5.0'), '5.0.1')
+        self.assertEqual(release.next_patch('5.0.4'), '5.0.5')
+
+    def test_bad_version(self):
+        with self.assertRaises(release.ReleaseError):
+            release.series_number('6.4')
+
+
+class GitFixture(unittest.TestCase):
+    def setUp(self):
+        self.temp = tempfile.TemporaryDirectory()
+        self.addCleanup(self.temp.cleanup)
+        self.repo = Path(self.temp.name)
+        self.previous = Path.cwd()
+        os.chdir(self.repo)
+        self.addCleanup(os.chdir, self.previous)
+        self.git('init', '-q', '-b', 'master')
+        self.git('config', 'user.name', 'Test Maintainer')
+        self.git('config', 'user.email', 'test@example.com')
+        self.commit('initial')
+        self.remote = self.repo / 'upstream.git'
+        subprocess.check_call(['git', 'init', '-q', '--bare', str(self.remote)])
+        self.git('remote', 'add', 'yoctoproject', str(self.remote))
+        self.git('update-ref', 'refs/remotes/yoctoproject/master', self.git('rev-parse', 'master'))
+
+    def git(self, *args):
+        return subprocess.check_output(['git', *args], text=True).strip()
+
+    def commit(self, subject):
+        with (self.repo / 'history.txt').open('a') as stream:
+            stream.write(subject + '\n')
+        self.git('add', 'history.txt')
+        self.git('commit', '-q', '-m', subject)
+
+    def branch(self, name):
+        self.git('branch', name)
+        self.git('update-ref', f'refs/remotes/yoctoproject/{name}', self.git('rev-parse', name))
+
+    def refresh(self, name):
+        self.git('update-ref', f'refs/remotes/yoctoproject/{name}', self.git('rev-parse', name))
+
+
+class ReleaseIntegrationTests(GitFixture):
+    def test_existing_tag_and_update(self):
+        self.branch('scarthgap')
+        self.git('checkout', '-q', 'scarthgap')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.commit('fix one')
+        self.commit('fix two')
+        self.refresh('scarthgap')
+        self.git('checkout', '-q', 'master')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager()
+        state = manager.status('scarthgap')
+        self.assertEqual((state.series, state.last_tag, state.commits, state.next_tag),
+                         ('5.0', '5.0', 2, '5.0.1'))
+
+    def test_no_updates(self):
+        self.branch('scarthgap')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        state = release.ReleaseManager().status('scarthgap')
+        self.assertEqual(state.commits, 0)
+        self.assertEqual(state.next_tag, '-')
+
+    def test_announcement_initial_count(self):
+        self.branch('wrynose')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '6.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-6.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.commit('master change')
+        self.branch('blacksail')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '6.1', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-6.1', '-m', 'initial')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager()
+        subject, body = manager.announcement('blacksail', '6.1')
+        self.assertEqual(subject, 'meta-arm blacksail release')
+        self.assertIn('1 commits since the previous Yocto Project release, 6.0', body)
+        self.assertIn('The meta-arm team', body)
+        self.assertNotIn('Changes included', body)
+
+    def test_update_announcement_lists_changes(self):
+        self.branch('scarthgap')
+        self.git('checkout', '-q', 'scarthgap')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.commit('fix one')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '5.0.1', '-m', 'update')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-5.0.1', '-m', 'update')
+        self.refresh('scarthgap')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager()
+        subject, body = manager.announcement('scarthgap', '5.0.1')
+        self.assertIn('fix one', body)
+        self.assertIn('1 commits', body)
+        self.assertIn('5.0.1 and yocto-5.0.1 tags', body)
+
+    def test_push_dry_run_does_not_modify_remote(self):
+        self.branch('scarthgap')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', '5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'yocto-5.0', '-m', 'initial')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(execute=False)
+        with patch('builtins.print') as printer:
+            manager.push(['scarthgap'])
+        self.assertTrue(any('New tags: 2' in str(call) for call in printer.call_args_list))
+
+
+
+class MailerTests(unittest.TestCase):
+    def test_auto_prefers_sendmail(self):
+        with patch.object(release.shutil, 'which', side_effect=lambda x: {'sendmail': '/usr/bin/sendmail', 'mutt': '/usr/bin/mutt'}.get(x)):
+            self.assertEqual(release.ReleaseManager(mailer='auto').mail_backend(), '/usr/bin/sendmail')
+
+    def test_force_mutt(self):
+        with patch.object(release.shutil, 'which', side_effect=lambda x: {'sendmail': '/usr/bin/sendmail', 'mutt': '/usr/bin/mutt'}.get(x)):
+            self.assertEqual(release.ReleaseManager(mailer='mutt').mail_backend(), '/usr/bin/mutt')
+
+    def test_force_sendmail_unavailable_does_not_fallback(self):
+        with patch.object(release.shutil, 'which', side_effect=lambda x: {'mutt': '/usr/bin/mutt'}.get(x)), patch.object(release.os, 'access', return_value=False):
+            manager = release.ReleaseManager(mailer='sendmail')
+            self.assertIsNone(manager.mail_backend())
+            with self.assertRaisesRegex(release.ReleaseError, 'sendmail'):
+                manager.send('subject', 'body')
+
+    def test_cli_override_env(self):
+        with patch.dict(os.environ, {'META_ARM_MAILER': 'mutt'}):
+            self.assertEqual(release.parser().parse_args(['--mailer', 'sendmail', 'check']).mailer, 'sendmail')
+            self.assertEqual(release.parser().parse_args(['check']).mailer, 'mutt')
+
+    def test_invalid_mailer_rejected(self):
+        with self.assertRaises(release.ReleaseError):
+            release.ReleaseManager(mailer='invalid')
+
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    unittest.main(verbosity=2)
+
+
+class EditorTests(unittest.TestCase):
+    def test_editor_inherits_terminal_streams(self):
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(edit=True)
+        with patch.object(manager, 'editor_command', return_value='vim -c "set spell"'):
+            with patch.object(release.subprocess, 'run') as invoke:
+                result = manager.edit_message('Subject', 'Body')
+        self.assertIsNone(result)
+        invoke.assert_called_once()
+        args, kwargs = invoke.call_args
+        self.assertEqual(args[0][:3], ['sh', '-c', 'vim -c "set spell" "$1"'])
+        self.assertTrue(kwargs['check'])
+        self.assertNotIn('stdout', kwargs)
+        self.assertNotIn('stderr', kwargs)
+        self.assertNotIn('stdin', kwargs)
+
+    def test_editor_failure_prevents_send(self):
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(edit=True)
+        with patch.object(manager, 'editor_command', return_value='vim'):
+            with patch.object(release.subprocess, 'run', side_effect=subprocess.CalledProcessError(1, 'vim')):
+                with self.assertRaisesRegex(release.ReleaseError, 'Editor exited unsuccessfully'):
+                    manager.edit_message('Subject', 'Body')
+
+
+class PlatformReleaseTests(GitFixture):
+    def test_platform_tag_name_and_date(self):
+        self.assertEqual(release.platform_tag('corstone1000', '2026.10.01'),
+                         'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01')
+        with self.assertRaises(release.ReleaseError):
+            release.platform_tag('corstone1000', '2026.02.30')
+
+    def test_platform_dry_run_does_not_create_tag(self):
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager()
+        tag = manager.platform('corstone1000', 'HEAD', '2026.10.01')
+        self.assertEqual(tag, 'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01')
+        self.assertIsNone(manager.tag_object(tag))
+
+    def test_platform_existing_tag_is_idempotent(self):
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01', '-m', 'release')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(execute=True)
+        self.assertEqual(manager.platform('corstone1000', 'HEAD', '2026.10.01'),
+                         'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01')
+
+    def test_push_explicit_platform_tag(self):
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01', '-m', 'release')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(execute=True)
+        manager.push(('CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01',))
+        remote = self.git('ls-remote', '--tags', '--refs', 'yoctoproject',
+                          'refs/tags/CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01')
+        self.assertIn('refs/tags/CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01', remote)
+
+    def test_push_auto_discovers_platform_tag(self):
+        self.git('tag', '-a', 'CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01', '-m', 'release')
+        manager = release.ReleaseManager(execute=True)
+        manager.push()
+        remote = self.git('ls-remote', '--tags', '--refs', 'yoctoproject',
+                          'refs/tags/CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01')
+        self.assertIn('refs/tags/CORSTONE1000-2026.10.01', remote)