MOSCOW, March 14. /TASS/. The move by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to hold Ukraine accountable for the May 2, 2014 events in Odessa looks like a glimpse of common sense, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS.
"Looks like a glimpse of common sense, albeit an overdue one," Peskov said. "Of course, we would like to see more manifestations [of common sense]," he added.
Earlier, the ECHR ruled against Ukraine which it said had failed to take action to prevent violence and protect lives during the events in Odessa on May 2, 2014, when extremists set fire to the House of Trade Unions.
On May 2, 2014, in Odessa, the extremists of the Right Sector (an organization banned in Russia) and the so-called Maidan self-defense attacked a tent city on the Kulikovo Field, where Odessa residents were collecting signatures for holding a referendum on federalization of Ukraine and giving the Russian language a state status. Federalization supporters took refuge in the House of Trade Unions, but the radicals surrounded the building and set it on fire. According to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, 48 people were killed and over 240 injured.
While the authorities said that only "anti-Maidan" supporters were the instigators, the investigation, which lasted for several years, was unable to prove their guilt in court. As a result, all those who were initially detained were acquitted in this case.