What declaration did the Allies issue on 26 July 1945 demanding Japan's surrender?

The Allies issued the Potsdam Declaration on 26 July 1945, demanding Japan's surrender.

The United States, the United Kingdom, and China released the declaration while the Potsdam Conference was taking place in Germany. It called for the unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces and warned that Japan faced “prompt and utter destruction” if it refused. The Soviet Union was not yet at war with Japan and did not initially sign the statement.

The declaration also described the intended postwar settlement. Japan's sovereignty would be limited to the home islands and other islands designated by the Allies, its military would be disarmed, and its government would be reshaped along democratic lines. It did not specify what would happen to Emperor Hirohito, an omission that complicated Japanese deliberations.

Japan eventually accepted the declaration in August 1945. Its terms were then incorporated into the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, making it a central legal and political bridge between the Allied ultimatum and the formal end of the war.