Pirates abduct six Ukrainians off Nigeria’s coast

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday at least six of its nationals were among the crew members abducted by pirates off the coast of Nigeria, from a Cameroon-flagged STEVIA cargo ship.

The ministry spokesman, Oleg Nikolenko, who confirmed this to journalists, said the pirates had attacked the vessel in the Gulf of Guinea, Africa’s most economically active and oil-rich region.

He confirmed that the pirates captured eight members of the crew at 28 nautical miles (51.8 kilometres) off the coast of Nigeria.

Nikolenko said: “Yes, we are aware of this situation. As a result of a pirate attack on the ship off the coast of Nigeria on December 16, eight crew members were captured, including six Ukrainian citizens.”

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The spokesman said the STEVIA cargo ship is operated by an Albanian company, adding that the Ukrainian embassy in Nigeria and Albania were taking appropriate response measures.

The daughter of one of the captured sailors confirmed on Saturday that there were six Ukrainians aboard the vessel.

Pirate activity in the region has increased in recent years, prompting Nigeria, Ghana, and other surrounding countries to set up a naval coordination operation to combat the menace.

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