VATICAN ESTABLISHES TIES WITH POLAND

The Vatican said Monday it had established diplomatic relations with Warsaw for the first time since the Communists took over in 1944. The way was paved for establishing full relations between Pope John Paul II's native Poland and the Vatican in May after the Warsaw parliament legalized the Roman Catholic Church legal status for the first time since 1944.

The Catholic Church played a major role in fostering an opposition-government dialogue which ushered in historic reforms in May.