"I think a ministerial meeting will be held in July. We need to reach a broad agreement in July. I think that is possible," Amari told reporters, as quoted by Kyodo news agency.
Amari's statement comes after a Tuesday decision by the US Senate to take a new vote on Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation that would allow President Barack Obama to bypass Congress when signing trade deals, such as TPP. The Senate's vote is expected on Wednesday.
Should the Senate adopt the TPA, "each nation will play the last card and we will make substantial progress toward concluding TPP," said Amari, who represents Japanese interests regarding the agreement.
The negotiations on the controversial agreement are shrouded in secrecy. The signing of the TPP would secure commercial agreements between the United States and 11 other countries, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Mexico and Malaysia among them. The deal is expected to cover about 40 percent of the global economy.
