V-P Day, meaning Victory in the Pacific Day, is also used for Victory over Japan Day in Australia.
The abbreviation reflects Australia's geographic position and wartime experience in the Pacific theater. Australian announcements and commemorations used “Victory in the Pacific” from the beginning, while “V-J Day” became more common in the United States and Britain.
The terminology can refer to different milestones. August 15, 1945, marked the public announcement of Japan's acceptance of the Allied terms. September 2 marked the formal signing of the surrender instrument aboard USS Missouri and the official end of the war.
V-P Day should not be confused with V-E Day, which commemorated Germany's surrender and the end of the war in Europe on May 8, 1945. Both abbreviations follow the Allied wartime pattern of naming victory days by theater.