Nearly nine months after losing chunks of the Kursk region to a surprise Ukrainian incursion, Russia has announced that its troops have fully reclaimed the border territory.

Ukrainian officials disputed the claim, saying their forces continue to hold back Russian troops in the Kursk sector.

Ukraine has denied Russian claims that it has been forced out of Russia's Kursk region.Valery Gerasimov, chief of staff of Russia's military, said his forces had regained full control of the region, eight months after Ukrainian forces first launched a surprise incursion into the border region,