The order directing Japanese forces to surrender was General Order No. 1. The United States Joint Chiefs of Staff prepared it, and President Harry Truman approved it on August 17, 1945.
General Douglas MacArthur issued the order after Japan’s surrender announcement. It required Japanese forces to surrender to designated Allied commanders, reveal their military dispositions, preserve equipment, and await disarmament. It also established occupation responsibilities across the territories controlled by Japan.
One important provision divided surrender areas in Korea at the 38th parallel. Japanese forces north of the line were ordered to surrender to Soviet commanders, while those south of it surrendered to U.S. forces. General Order No. 1 was not the same document as the Japanese Instrument of Surrender: the instrument was signed aboard USS Missouri on September 2, while General Order No. 1 was an operational directive implementing the surrender.