Russia Committed To Rescuing Citizen Kidnapped By Pirates In Gulf Of Guinea - Embassy

The Russian embassy in Nigeria said on Tuesday that a Russian citizen had been abducted by pirates during an attack on a ship in the Gulf of Guinea, adding that efforts were being made to rescue the hostage

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th March, 2021) The Russian embassy in Nigeria said on Tuesday that a Russian citizen had been abducted by pirates during an attack on a ship in the Gulf of Guinea, adding that efforts were being made to rescue the hostage.

"According to the shipping company 'De Poli Shipmanagement,' on March 12, 210 miles from Lagos (Nigeria), a pirate attack on the ship 'MT Davide B' took place. A Russian citizen S. V. Vdovin, among other crew members, was abducted," the embassy wrote on Facebook.

The embassy added that "all possible measures" were being taken to determine the abducted sailor's whereabouts and ensure his release.

A spokesman for De Poli Shipmanagement, Cor Radings, told Sputnik that the attack took place on March 11 in the afternoon.

"We were not able yet to establish contact with our crew or with people who are holding them. All our efforts are going to restore this contact. So, there are no news," Radings said.

The spokesman refrained from disclosing any identity details of the seized sailors because of privacy reasons but confirmed that one of them was a Russian national.

"Other nationalities there were people from the Philippines and the Baltic states, but the majority of the crew on board from the Philippines," Radings said.

The Gulf of Guinea is known to be one of the world's most pirate-heavy waters, with a surge in ambushes and abductions over the past two years.