Nine Allied nations supplied representatives who signed Japan’s surrender instrument in 1945.
The nations were the United States, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. Their representatives signed after Douglas MacArthur accepted the surrender and Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz signed for the United States.
The count refers to Allied nations, not the total number of people who signed. Japan supplied two principal signatories: Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijirō Umezu. Other Japanese delegates attended, but only those two signed the instrument on Japan’s behalf.
The ceremony reflected the multinational nature of the war against Japan. Several signatories represented countries that had fought in different theaters, including China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and the Pacific. This is why the document is more than a bilateral agreement between Japan and the United States.