Nine Allied nations, excluding Japan, had representatives sign the Japanese Instrument of Surrender in 1945.
The countries were 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 the individual nations.
The count can be confusing because there were more than nine Allied signers. MacArthur signed as Supreme Commander, and nine national representatives then signed. Japan supplied two signatories: Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijirō Umezu.
The ceremony’s arrangement reflected both the military coalition and diplomatic disagreements about representation. Some Commonwealth governments insisted on separate participation rather than signing only through the United Kingdom. The final document therefore recorded nine Allied national participants alongside Japan’s representatives.