Coup response requires pressure be put on Turkey: Italy Foreign Minister

ROME (Reuters) - Pressure should be put on Turkey to make sure the rule of law is upheld there amid a fierce crackdown on suspected plotters in a failed coup, Italy's Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Tuesday. Turkish special forces are hunting a group of commandos and more than 60,000 soldiers, police, judges and civil servants have been arrested, suspended or put under investigation after an attempted power grab on July 15. At a parliamentary hearing, Gentiloni said the reaction from Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's government was disproportionate and dangerous and expressed concern about the possible reintroduction of the death penalty in Turkey. He said he was also concerned about "violations of the rule of law which require us to exert pressure". He did not say who should be exerting pressure, or what form it could take, but added the situation was "fluid" and it was too early to draw firm conclusions. Italy supports having dialogue with Ankara, which struck a deal with the European Union in March to help stem the flow of migrants in return for cash, visas and renewed talks on joining the bloc. "It is up to Turkey to decide whether to proceed on the path it has taken up again, in rather exceptional circumstances, with the EU, in the knowledge that we will not sacrifice any of the founding principles of the Union or the rule of law," Gentiloni said. (Reporting by Massimiliano Di Giorgio, Writing by Isla Binnie; Editing by Tom Heneghan)