At what time did General MacArthur open Japan’s 1945 surrender ceremony in Tokyo Bay?

General MacArthur opened Japan’s 1945 surrender ceremony at 9:02 a.m. Tokyo time.

The ceremony began aboard USS Missouri on September 2, 1945. MacArthur, serving as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, delivered opening remarks before the Japanese delegation and Allied representatives signed the Instrument of Surrender.

The timing is recorded in accounts of Missouri’s ceremony and is distinct from the signing times. Mamoru Shigemitsu signed for Japan’s government at about 9:04 a.m., and General Yoshijirō Umezu signed for Imperial General Headquarters at about 9:06 a.m.

The entire proceedings lasted roughly 23 minutes. Although the event was brief, it was carefully staged and widely recorded, with naval vessels and aircraft present in Tokyo Bay. The opening time is therefore a precise detail of the ceremony rather than the time Japan first announced its surrender to the public.