Myanmar’s long-promised general elections will take place in December or January next year at the earliest, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing said at a state-level meeting in Minsk, the latest effort by the military government to retain power and earn legitimacy.

Myanmar's military government will hold a general election in December 2025 or January 2026, state media said on Saturday, citing the junta chief, who provided the first specific time frame for the long-promised polls in the war-torn nation.

Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing announced the timing of the election while on a visit to Belarus on Friday, the military-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported. “The election is slated for December 2025, with the possibility of … January 2026,” the newspaper quoted Min Aung Hlaing as saying.

Sanctioned and isolated by the West, the two nations are moving to develop their currently negligible trade and investment ties.

State-run media in Myanmar say the head of the military government has declared the country will hold a general election within 10 months.

The two sides reached deals to cooperate on nuclear and space technology, among many others, and the junta boss backed Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The head of Myanmar's military government has said the country will hold a national election in December 2025 or January 2026. General Min Aung Hlaing said the elections would be "free and fair" - adding that 53 political parties had already submitted their lists to participate.