On September 2, 1945, two Japanese officials signed the surrender document aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, bringing Japan’s war to a formal end. The ceremony lasted just 23 minutes, but it marked the culmination of years of fighting and weeks of dramatic events that had pushed Japan toward surrender.
The day is remembered as V-J Day, short for Victory over Japan Day. But there is some confusion over exactly when it is observed. Japan announced its surrender on August 15, and countries including Britain, Australia, the Netherlands and the Koreas mark the surrender on that date. The United States observes V-J Day on September 2, the date the surrender was formally signed, while the Philippines, China and Russia observe it on September 3.
