Yoshijiro Umezu signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender second for Japan, representing Imperial General Headquarters.
Umezu was Chief of the Army General Staff when the surrender ceremony took place aboard USS Missouri. He signed shortly after Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu, who represented the Japanese government.
The distinction between the two signatures reflected Japan’s governmental and military structures. Shigemitsu signed by command of the Emperor and on behalf of the Japanese government, while Umezu signed for Imperial Japanese General Headquarters.
Umezu had opposed surrender and was one of the senior military figures involved in Japan’s wartime leadership. He nevertheless signed the document at the formal ceremony, where the Japanese delegation accepted the Allied terms and ended the war.