In a 15 September 2004 telephone interview, the consul (notary public) of the Consulate General of Ukraine in New York provided the following information: He explained that the automobile symbol is stamped into passports to indicate that the person crossed a land border, presumably travelling by car, rather than through a port or airport border crossing. He also indicated that this stamp did not indicate whether a car had temporary licence plates or was intended to be sold. The vice-consul at the Consulate General of Ukraine in Chicago corroborated this information and added that people wanting to import or export automobiles required additional documentation that would not be indicated in a passport (15 Sept. 2004).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Consulate General of Ukraine in Chicago. 15 September 2004. Telephone interview with vice-consul.

Consulate General of Ukraine in New York. 15 September 2004. Telephone interview with consul (notary public).

Attempts to contact the Embassy of Ukraine in Ottawa and the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, DC were unsuccessful.