What document did Japan sign aboard USS Missouri to formalize its World War II surrender?

Japan signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender aboard USS Missouri to formalize its World War II surrender.

The printed instrument was signed in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945. It stated that Japan accepted the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration and ordered the unconditional surrender of Japanese forces. The document marked the formal end of hostilities between Japan and the Allied powers.

Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed on behalf of the Japanese government, followed by General Yoshijirō Umezu for Imperial General Headquarters. General Douglas MacArthur then signed for the Allied powers, with representatives of other Allied nations adding their signatures.

The instrument is sometimes confused with the Potsdam Declaration. The declaration was an ultimatum issued in July 1945; the instrument was the later document that recorded Japan's capitulation. A peace treaty came years afterward, so surrender and the legal postwar settlement were not the same event.