Nine Allied representatives signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender after MacArthur. They represented the United States, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.
MacArthur signed first for the Allied powers as Supreme Commander. Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz then signed for the United States, followed by representatives of the other eight Allied governments. Their signatures showed that Japan’s surrender applied across the coalition that had fought the Pacific War.
The participating countries did not all have identical wartime roles. China had been fighting Japan since 1937, while the Soviet Union entered the war against Japan in August 1945. Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand also had forces or territories involved in the conflict.
The ceremony took place on the deck of USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The instrument listed the Allied governments whose commanders and representatives would receive Japanese surrenders throughout the Asia-Pacific region.