Tokyo: The leaders of Japan and South Korea are set to hold their first formal meeting in 15 months in a bid to ease a longstanding historical dispute that has hurt trade and hindered cooperation on dealing with North Korea.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in were set to hold talks on the sidelines of a trilateral summit with China's Premier Li Keqiang in the mainland city of Chengdu on Tuesday. The event comes as Pyongyang signals it may fire a long-range missile as nuclear talks with the Trump administration stall ahead of a year-end deadline for progress set by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Ties between Japan and South Korea have plunged to new depths over the past year, in a series of disputes rooted in disagreements over whether Japan has shown sufficient contrition for its 1910-1945 occupation of the Korean Peninsula.

Frosty relations between Shinzo Abe and Moon Jae-in are being fuelled by public attitudes, with many voters opposed to reconciliation. Credit:AP

While prospects for any breakthrough are slim, the fact that Abe and Moon are talking is seen as a positive sign that could make it easier for them to bridge differences on simmering disputes that include Japan's export curbs on goods vital to South Korea's massive technology sector.