The Potsdam Declaration demanding Japan’s surrender was issued in Potsdam, Germany.
The declaration was released on July 26, 1945, during the Potsdam Conference near Berlin. The United States, the United Kingdom, and China called on Japan to surrender unconditionally and warned that rejecting the terms would bring “prompt and utter destruction.” The Soviet Union was not yet a signatory when the declaration was issued.
Japan’s government initially did not accept the declaration. After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Soviet declaration of war, Japanese leaders reconsidered their position. Emperor Hirohito eventually instructed the government to accept the declaration, with the status of the imperial institution becoming a central concern.
Potsdam is sometimes confused with Berlin because the conference occurred in the Berlin region and addressed the postwar settlement in Europe. The declaration’s name comes from Potsdam itself, where the Allied leaders met in July and August 1945.