Return to the International Community
In 1951, the San Francisco Peace Treaty was co-signed with the major allied-force countries, and Japan regained
independence. Japan joined the United Nations in 1956. Japan also joined the International Monetary Fund and the
International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank) in 1953, and the General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade in 1955. In the case of the IMF, first Japan joined as an Article 14 country that allowed restrictive
foreign exchange transactions for balance of payment purposes, and later became an Article 8 country in 1964. In
GATT, Japan initially joined as an Article 12 country with possible trade restrictions for balance of payment
purposes. The Japanese economy was under BOP constraints up until the mid 1960s.