Nine Allied countries had representatives sign Japan’s surrender instrument in Tokyo Bay in 1945.
The Allied signatories represented the United States, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. General Douglas MacArthur signed first for the Allied powers, followed by representatives of those nine countries.
The ceremony took place on September 2, 1945, aboard USS Missouri. The order of signatures reflected the ceremony’s carefully arranged protocol. Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz signed for the United States, General Hsu Yung-chang for China, and Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser for the United Kingdom. The Soviet representative was Lieutenant General Kuzma Derevyanko.
This total counts the Allied governments represented by signatories, not the number of people on the deck. Eleven Japanese delegates attended, but only Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijirō Umezu signed for Japan. The resulting document formalized Japan’s unconditional surrender and ended the war with the Allied powers.