Brussels, 14/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - The Council of Europe will be launching the European Heritage Days (EHD) on 21 September, in Saint Petersburg. The event will last three days and will be attended by, among others, Odile Quentin, Director-General for Culture and Education at the European Commission; Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe; and Alexandre Sokolov, Russian Minister for Culture and Education. A seminar on the values of the European cultural heritage will be organised on 23 September, allowing the public to gain access to places that are usually closed to the public. Inaugurated in 1991 by the Council of Europe in order to heighten citizens' awareness of the continent's cultural diversity and wealth, these Days have, since 1999, become a joint initiative with the European Union. Today, the 49 countries that signed the 1954 Council for Europe Cultural Convention take part in the event.