Category
page 1Surrender of Japan
surrender of Japan
end of World War II, 2 September 1945
USS Missouri
1944 Iowa-class battleship
Japanese Instrument of Surrender
1945 agreement ending hostilities in WWII
Hirohito surrender broadcast
radio broadcast in which Emperor Hirohito announced the Japanese surrender in World War II
Victory over Japan Day
day on which Japan surrendered, effectively ending World War II
V-J Day in Times Square
1945 photograph by Alfred Eisenstaedt
Kyūjō Incident
coup d'état
mokusatsu
is a Japanese word meaning "ignore", "take no notice of" or "treat with silent contempt". It is composed of two kanji: (moku "silence") and (satsu "killing"). In 1945, the Japanese government used the word in its initial rejection of the Potsdam Declaration, the Allied demand that Japan surrender unconditionally in World War II. It has been argued that the word was misunderstood by the Allies and that the misunderstanding interrupted a negotiation for a peaceful end to the war. The consensus of modern historians, however, is that the Allies understood the word correctly.