According to the portal, pirates attacked the M/T Jane tanker, which is registered in the Marshall Islands, at 01:19 GMT on Wednesday morning. The attack eventually proved to be unsuccessful and the crew has been reported safe, the portal said.
Wednesday's incident is the sixth such attack to take place in the Gulf of Guinea in as many days. The portal said that the pirates are likely attempting to conduct kidnap for ransom operations
The Russian Foreign Ministry in late September urged the countries of the region to consolidate their efforts to combat piracy after two Russian nationals were captured by pirates during an attack on the Water Phoenix cargo ship on 8 September.
The two hostages were later released on 31 October, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova announced in early November.
