The U.S. administration of President Barack Obama has approved Japan’s participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade negotiations, as the two countries reached agreement Friday on contentious issues in preparatory talks, Kyodo news quoted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as saying. Japan still needs U.S. congressional approval before it can formally join the talks involving 11 Pacific Rim nations. As the process is expected to take 90 days, the earliest Japan can join the formal negotiation will be July.