The parliament of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina ceremonially adopted the statute of autonomy Dec. 14. According to the statute, the province remains an integral part of Serbia but regains some elements of the autonomy it lost in 1990. Autonomy means Vojvodina will be able to apply for EU regional funding once it becomes available to Serbia and will have more control over some sources of revenue. Vojvodina's provincial assembly adopted the statute in October 2008, but had to wait for approval from Serbia's parliament on Dec. 1. The return of Vojvodina's autonomy is part of a strategy by Serbian President Boris Tadic to strengthen his pro-EU voting base in the country and preempt any potential problem in accession talks with the EU — and Hungary specifically — over Vojvodina's Hungarian minority.