The coup-leading general—who swept aside democracy in 2021, detaining elected figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi and dissolving her party—was anointed by pro-military MPs installed in a recent election overseen by the junta he leads.

The premier's announcement late Wednesday comes as the country starts to feel the impact of the Middle East war on global fuel supplies.

A Russian tanker full of crude oil has entered Cuban waters and was expected to reach port on Monday, possibly granting a lifeline to Cuba as US President Donald Trump appeared to relax a de facto oil blockade on the Caribbean island.

Organizers said "at least 8 million people gathered today at more than 3,300 events across all 50 states," from big cities and small towns. US authorities provided no national crowd estimate.

Two sailboats carrying humanitarian aid to crisis-hit Cuba reached Havana on Saturday after disappearing during a longer-than-expected journey from Mexico that triggered a search-and-rescue operation.

His administration has opened up negotiations with elements of Cuba's leadership in recent weeks, while Trump himself has hinted that kinetic action could be possible.

The US president on Wednesday unleashed his latest broadside against Macron during a private lunch as he lambasted NATO allies for not joining the war against Iran.

Trump described the alliance as a "paper tiger" and said removing the United States from the defence pact was now "beyond reconsideration," the newspaper reported. He said he had long held doubts about NATO's credibility.

"I think there's no doubt, unfortunately, after this conflict is concluded, we are going to have to reexamine that relationship. We're going to have to reexamine the value of NATO in that alliance for our country," Rubio said to host Sean Hannity on Fox News.

The prospect of a US service person being alive and on the run inside Iran raises the stakes for Washington in a conflict with low public support and no sign of an imminent end.

Just 221 commodities vessels have crossed the Strait of Hormuz since March 1, some more than once, down from around 120 daily transits during peacetime.