Pope appoints three new bishops for Vietnam VATICAN CITY - Pope John Paul has named three new bishops for the communist-ruled state of Vietnam, the Vatican said on Friday. The Pope appointed Pierre Nguyen Soan Bishop of Quy Nhon, Joseph Tran Xuan Tieu assistant Bishop of Long Xuyen and entrusted the diocese of Lang Son and Cao Bang to Joseph Ngo Quang Kiet, the Vatican said in its daily bulletin. ``The three nominations are the result of patient Vatican diplomacy,'' said Fides, the Holy See's missionary arm news agency. Last month Vietnam officials welcomed Vatican proposals for the appointment of bishops to vacant dioceses -- one of the main points of contention between the two sides. ``It's certainly a lovely piece of news,'' Cardinal Giuseppe Pham Dinh Tung, Archbishop of Hanoi, told Fides. Senior Vietnamese clergy have already asked the Pope to visit in August to celebrate a major Catholic festival but Vatican sources say that if a trip takes place in 1999, it will most likely be towards the end of the year as part of a tentatively planned larger trip to Asia. Relations between Vietnam and the Vatican have been strained because the government sees the church as linked to the colonial era. Hanoi insists the Vatican should have no direct influence over the Vietnamese Catholic Church and does not automatically approve Vatican appointments. Vietnam's Catholic community numbers around eight million and is Southeast Asia's largest outside the Philippines. While the atmosphere for worship in Vietnam has improved in recent years, the state retains strict controls over religious groups and related activities. Fides said the Vietnamese government had not yet given an official response to the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with the Vatican. REUTERS - June 18, 1999