Schmidt, who is the highest-profile U.S. business executive to visit North Korea since leader Kim Jong Un took power a year ago, has not spoken publicly about the reasons behind the journey to North Korea.

NPR: AP Exclusive: Richardson Pressing NKorean Test Ban

But just to make sure that the message gets through to Chinese tourists and investors, the husband-and-wife team behind Jeju Weekly, Dr. Kim Gyong Ho and Song Jong Hee, plan to start a Chinese publication in 2011 which will be available in both print and on the web.

FORBES: South Korea's Jeju Wants Chinese Green Investors

Both Lee and Kim Jong Pil call the Chungchung region of central South Korea home, a coincidence that could dilute the oppositionist's strength.

CNN: Change at the Top

From almost 40% a decade ago, it fell to 27% in 2008, according to a recent paper by Soyoung Kim of Seoul National University, as well as Jong-Wha Lee and Cyn-Young Park of the Asian Development Bank.

ECONOMIST: China may not matter quite as much as you think

The U.S. and South Korea last week warned that the trip to Pyongyang by Mr. Iijima, a top adviser to the Abe cabinet, may hurt efforts to pressure North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

WSJ: Japan to Follow Own Path on Abductees

Kim Dae Jung, a liberal former democracy activist, was once a constant target of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, the national security apparatus that conservative Kim Jong Pil formed during military strongman Park Chung Hee's rule.

CNN: Alliances and Defections