The leaders of China and Japan are to meet on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Hangzhou, China, on Monday amid soaring tensions over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will exchange their thoughts — not just a handshake — at a sit-down meeting in the evening, according to an official familiar with the plan who asked not to be identified, citing government policy.

Asia's two largest economies have long bickered over territorial disputes and Japan's wartime history, but things have taken a turn for the worse in recent months, even as trade and tourism numbers have held up.