BANGKOK — Myanmar’s military government and a major ethnic rebel group in the country’s northeast have signed a formal ceasefire agreement, mediator China said Monday.

The ceasefire between the military and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, which seized large tracts of territory along the border with China, is the second such pact in little over a year and came into effect on Saturday. A previous pact in January last year was not honored by either side.

The new ceasefire was brokered by China in mid-January, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily briefing in Beijing.

China is the most important foreign ally of Myanmar’s military rulers, who took power after ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The takeover led to nationwide peaceful protests that escalated into civil war.

Beijing has major geopolitical and economic interests in Myanmar and is deeply concerned about instability along their border.

— The Associated Press