China on Tuesday called for full support of countries involved to ensure the safe release of seven Chinese nationals kidnapped last week in Cameroon.

The Chinese government is very focused on the kidnapping, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regular press conference.

"We call for full support of countries involved to ensure the safe release of the kidnapped Chinese fishermen," he said, adding that the foreign ministry would closely follow up the development of the rescue work.

The seven Chinese nationals on board two fishing boats owned by China's Dalian Beihai Fishing Company were abducted early Friday morning by gunmen off Cameroon's Bakassi peninsula in the Gulf of Guinea.

A group calling itself the "Africa Marine Commando" has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.

The Chinese embassy to Cameroon said Monday that the hostages were safe.

"The Chinese and Cameroonian authorities are working hard to rescue them. Negotiations are going on," said Xue Jinwei, Chinese Ambassador to Cameroon.

The Bakassi peninsula, which has an area of 1,000 square km and great oil and gas potential, is a hotbed of banditry in the Gulf of Guinea. It was handed over from Nigeria to Cameroon in August 2008 under a ruling by the International Court of Justice in the Hague.