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Pskov's treasured monuments to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site

Pskov "is one of the cradles of Russia and Russian civilization," according to the Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky

PARIS, September 15. /TASS/. Monuments in the historic Russian city of Pskov may be listed as a World Heritage Site in a year and a half, Russia’s Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky told TASS on Friday.

In his two-day visit to the French capital, the Russian culture minister met with the heads of the UNESCO World Heritage Center, he said.

"We and UNESCO have a tight agenda. Today we were discussing a new Russian nomination - the Pskov Kremlin and the city’s cathedrals - with the center’s top officials," Medinsky said, answering a question from TASS at a briefing in the Russian Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Center in Paris.

Pskov "is one of the cradles of Russia and Russian civilization," he stressed. "We all have come to the conclusion and I hope that we were able to persuade the heads of the World Heritage Center that it is unfair that Pskov has still not been placed on UNESCO's list."

"We are intensifying the work. We hope that in a year and a half we will see a UNESCO star next to the city of Pskov on the map," he added.

Pskov, a city in northwestern Russia, is one of the nation’s oldest cities. It was first mentioned in historical chronicles in 903. In the Middle Ages it became important as a trade center and an outpost.