Who was the first Allied national representative to sign after MacArthur at Japan’s 1945 surrender?

Chester W. Nimitz was the first Allied national representative to sign after MacArthur at Japan’s 1945 surrender.

Nimitz signed the instrument as the representative of the United States after Douglas MacArthur signed in his multinational role as Supreme Commander for the Allied powers. Nimitz was a Fleet Admiral and had served as Commander in Chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas during the war.

Other Allied representatives signed afterward, including General Xu Yongchang for China, Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser for the United Kingdom, General Kuzma Derevyanko for the Soviet Union, and representatives of Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. Nimitz’s role is sometimes confused with MacArthur’s because both were among the most senior American commanders in the Pacific, but only MacArthur accepted the surrender on behalf of all Allied powers.