Japan loses contact with a surveillance drone off the country's northwestern coast

TOKYO -- Japan's air force lost contact on Tuesday with one of its long-distance surveillance drones after it went missing during a flight off the country's northwestern coast.

There was no immediate information as to what the mission of the uncrewed RQ-4B aircraft, also known as Global Hawk, was.

The Air Self-Defense Force said the drone disappeared from the radar and was last seen 50 kilometers (31 miles) off the coast of Tottori earlier in the afternoon.

The drone is one of three Global Hawks owned by the air force and deployed at its Misawa Air Base in the northern prefecture of Aomori.

The drones are considered valuable because they can conduct long-range missions and are able to fly at a height of about 60,000 feet (18.3 kilometers) and can fly continuously for up to 36 hours. They allow Japan to easily monitor areas on the Asian mainland, including North Korea and China.

Japan is trying to adapt to changing times and develop defense strategies that use drones, including those for combat, artificial intelligence and new methods of warfare. Under its five-year plan established in 2022, the country has doubled its defense spending to about 2% of its gross domestic product to build up its Self-Defense Forces’ offensive role to counter China’s growing assertiveness.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government is now preparing new security and defense strategies, expected to be unveiled later this year.

Beijing has criticized Japan’s defense buildup as “new militarism.”