S.Korea may conflict with U.S. over Kaesong complex: CRS

South Korea and the United States may conflict over North Korean policy, if Seoul pushes to expand the Kaesong industrial complex, according to a U.S. congressional think tank.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) said in a report released on Thursday that the South Korean moves 'could clash with legislative efforts in Congress to expand U.S. sanctions against North Korea.'

President Park Geun-hye has stressed the so-called 'trustpolitik' in her inter-Korean initiatives, with North Korea responding positively. The Kaesong complex is a landmark joint venture between the two Koreas located just north of their border.

The friction between Seoul and Washington is over U.S. guidelines on South Korea's civilian nuclear capabilities.

Seoul seeks confirmation of its right to uranium enrichment technology as a matter of national sovereignty, while the U.S. has been reluctant to give permission due to concerns over the impact on talks to denuclearize North Korea.