Myanmar’s military government announced on Thursday that it was ending the state of emergency declared after it seized power in 2021 and would restructure administrative bodies to prepare for the new election at the end of the year.

The military government hopes elections can bring more international legitimacy. But the generals will still rule, and opposition groups are boycotting.

Myanmar’s military leadership lifted a state of emergency more than four years after it took power in a coup, a necessary step for holding elections slated to be held later this year.