Three members of the majority Japanese Liberal Democratic Party on May 3 expressed confidence that the Trans-Pacific Partnership would be approved in an upcoming extraordinary session of the Japanese Diet despite some resistance from opposition parties, Japanese farmers and the lack of movement in the United States Congress. Yoshimasa Hayashi - who is an LDP member of the Diet's upper house, the House of Councillors - said that the extraordinary session would begin in August and could be extended "once or twice" as per Diet rules. Hayashi said TPP would be taken up and passed during that session and two other LDP members participating with him in a Brookings event on the domestic Japanese political agenda were optimistic about that time line.
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