The vehicle registration plates of the Soviet Union are rectangular plates of black characters on a white background. Like most nations, the displaying of a registration plate is required for all vehicles within the Soviet Union. The last letters indicate the region and/or city in which the vehicle is registered in. Many regions and cities have two or more codes, due to the larger number of registered vehicles. For instance, the city of Kiev uses the codes "КИ" (KI) and "ХТ" (KhT), while the Kiev Oblast (not including the city) has the code "КХ" (KKh).