  We present an x-ray absorption study of the dependence of the V oxidation
state on the thickness of LaVO$_3$ (LVO) and capping LaAlO$_3$ (LAO) layers in
the multilayer structure of LVO sandwiched between LAO. We found that the
change of the valence of V as a function of LAO layer thickness can be
qualitatively explained by a transition between electronically reconstructed
interfaces and a chemical reconstruction. The change as a function of LVO layer
thickness is complicated by the presence of a considerable amount of V$^{4+}$
in the bulk of the thicker LVO layers.
