What was the July 26, 1945 Allied ultimatum that set terms for Japan’s surrender called?

The July 26, 1945 Allied ultimatum that set terms for Japan’s surrender was called the Potsdam Declaration.

The United States, United Kingdom, and China issued the declaration during the Potsdam Conference. It called for the surrender of all Japanese armed forces and warned that refusal would bring “prompt and utter destruction.” The document also described the intended postwar treatment of Japan.

Its terms included disarmament, occupation of selected points, punishment of war criminals, and the limitation of Japanese sovereignty to the home islands and other territories designated by the Allies. The declaration did not directly state what would happen to Emperor Hirohito, an omission that contributed to uncertainty in Japan.

The Potsdam Declaration is sometimes confused with the Cairo Declaration of 1943, which addressed Allied aims concerning Japanese-occupied territories. It is also distinct from the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, the document actually signed aboard USS Missouri. The declaration provided the political terms that Japan eventually accepted; the instrument formalized the surrender.