Which document did the Allies use to set out Japan’s surrender terms in July 1945?

The Potsdam Declaration set out the Allies’ surrender terms for Japan in July 1945.

Issued on 26 July 1945, the declaration was signed by United States President Harry S. Truman, United Kingdom Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek. It called for the unconditional surrender of Japan’s armed forces and warned of “prompt and utter destruction” if Japan refused.

The declaration also described the Allies’ intended postwar policy. Japan would be disarmed, militarism would be eliminated, and its sovereignty would be limited to the home islands and other territories the Allies specified. The document did not mention the atomic bomb, which had not yet been used in war.

Japan’s government initially did not accept the declaration publicly. After the atomic bombings, the Soviet declaration of war, and internal political debate, Emperor Hirohito supported accepting its terms. Japan’s acceptance was later embodied in the formal Instrument of Surrender signed aboard USS Missouri on 2 September 1945.