'Myanmar military respects international community but will stick to its plan'

Protests against the military coup in Myanmar has sparked global concern

Myanmar ruling military respects its neighbours and the international community but will forge ahead with objectives it set out when it took power last month, a spokesman said on Thursday.

Read more: Six killed in Myanmar as UN condemns protest crackdown

"We will hold an election and we will hand over to the wining party," military spokesman Brigadier General Zaw Min Tun told a news conference. "We respect neighbouring countries and international community but we will continue with our five objectives."

The military also respects and values media freedom and has only arrested journalists who were inciting unrest, he said.