Xi, Abe meet on sidelines of Jakarta summit: Japan official

The leaders of China and Japan held talks today for only the second time since taking office, a Japanese official said, seeking to repair a relationship damaged by territorial disputes and a bitter wartime legacy.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met on the sidelines of a summit in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, the official told AFP, speaking anonymously.

It was a significant step following their first meeting at a summit in November last year in China, where they shared an awkward handshake.

However, just before the meeting, Abe, a strident nationalist, stoked fresh regional anger by stopping short of apologising for Japan's World War II rampage through Asia in a speech to the gathering of Asian and African leaders.