What was the document signed aboard USS Missouri that formally recorded Japan’s surrender?

The Japanese Instrument of Surrender was the document signed aboard USS Missouri that formally recorded Japan’s surrender.

The instrument was signed on 2 September 1945 during a ceremony in Tokyo Bay. It stated that Japan accepted the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration and ordered the unconditional surrender of Japanese armed forces. The document also required Japanese authorities to carry out the emperor’s orders and provide information requested by the Allied commanders.

The instrument was not itself a long-term peace treaty. It ended active hostilities and established the legal and military framework for Japan’s capitulation. A separate peace treaty, the Treaty of San Francisco, was signed in 1951 and came into force in 1952.

The Potsdam Declaration should also be distinguished from the instrument. The declaration issued the Allied terms in July 1945; Japan accepted those terms, and the instrument documented that acceptance and surrender. This distinction prevents the two documents from being treated as interchangeable.