The Russians, who work for the Aluminum Smelter Company of Nigeria (ALSCON), controlled by Russian aluminum giant RUSAL, were abducted by gunmen who broke into their residential premises in the southeastern town of Ikot Abasi Sunday, killing their Nigerian driver.
"Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua and Vice President Goodluck Jonathan have assumed control of search and release efforts," Mikhail Kamynin said.
The official said the Russian Embassy in the country maintained permanent contacts with Nigerian Foreign Ministry chiefs, the national security service and local authorities.
None of the militant groups active in the country has so far claimed responsibility for the abduction or put forward demands, Russia's Foreign Ministry said earlier. But the employees are widely believed to have been abducted for ransom.
Nigeria's ambassador to Russia was summoned Monday to the Foreign Ministry over the abduction.
Militants fighting against the Nigerian government for greater autonomy in the oil-rich Niger Delta have intensified their attacks lately on industry facilities that are largely run by Western companies.
About 40 people, mostly employees of oil companies, have been abducted and released in the country since January 2006. They were mainly nationals of the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Turkey and the Philippines.
A Belarusian woman who worked as a senior manager with a local branch of the British services company Compass Group, was kidnapped May 5 and released 12 days later.
