In the 1945 V-J Day announcement, U.S. President Harry S. Truman gave September 2, 1945, for Japan’s formal surrender ceremony.
Truman announced Japan’s acceptance of the Allied surrender terms on August 14, 1945, in the United States. However, he distinguished that announcement from the official ceremony, which was scheduled for September 2.
The ceremony took place aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Japanese representatives signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, formally ending the major hostilities of World War II.
The date can be confused with August 15, when Emperor Hirohito’s surrender broadcast was heard in Japan, or August 14, when the surrender was announced in the United States. September 2 is the date associated with the formal signing and the official U.S. V-J Day observance.