Which Allied commander accepted Japan's surrender for the Allies aboard USS Missouri?

Douglas MacArthur accepted Japan’s surrender for the Allies aboard USS Missouri.

MacArthur served as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers and presided over the ceremony in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945. He signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender in that capacity before representatives of the other Allied governments added their signatures.

Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz signed next as the United States representative. MacArthur’s role was distinct from Nimitz’s: MacArthur accepted the surrender on behalf of the Allied powers, while Nimitz represented the United States. This distinction is a common source of confusion when identifying the ceremony’s leading American figures.

MacArthur later directed the Allied occupation of Japan. The occupation brought major political, legal, and social reforms, including a new constitution that took effect in 1947. The surrender ceremony itself lasted roughly 23 minutes and formally ended the war after Japan’s public announcement in August.