The Potsdam conference, held on July 17 to August 2, 1945, was the last of the World War II meetings held by the big three heads of state namely American President Harry S. Truman, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (and Clement Attlee, his successor), and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. The Potsdam conference was held near Berlin in which the leaders issued a joint declaration demanding the unconditional surrender of Japan. The talks were otherwise mostly centered on post war Europe.