ANKARA, August 14 (RIA Novosti) - NATO forces on Friday thwarted an attempt by Somali pirates to hijack a Turkish merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden, Turkish maritime authorities said.

The initial report on the attempted hijack of the Elgiznur Cebi, with 19 crew members on board, was received by a Turkish frigate, the Gediz, which was patrolling the area.

A NATO helicopter then came to the aid of the vessel and forced the pirates away from the ship.

"A hijacking attempt on the Turkish-flagged Egiznur Cebi, which left the Ukrainian port of Yuzhny with a shipment of iron casts heading for the Saudi Arabian port of al Damman, occurred at 5:45 a.m. local time [GMT 02:45]," a press release read.

The statement did not say which warship the NATO helicopter had come from.

Around 35 warships from the navies of 16 countries are currently deployed off Somalia's coast to counter frequent pirate attacks on key trade routes.

The Russian Navy joined international anti-piracy efforts off Somali coast in October 2008.

According to the United Nations, Somali pirates collected $150 million in ransom payments from ship owners last year, while overall losses from piracy were estimated at $13-16 billion, including the soaring cost of insurance and protection for vessels, as well as sending ships on longer routes to avoid high-risk areas.