----------- Hamid Karzai Afghan president on sunday defended a recent agreement on strategic partnership with the US, saying his conflict-crippled country could not progress without support from the international community. talking to a large gathering at the governor's office here, the president argued other countries in the region such as Pakistan and India too had achieved development on the strength of foreign assistance. Karzai went on to assert Afghanistan's sovereignty, saying it desired warm ties with all countries of the world. However, he explained, Afghanistan was not allied to one particular country. Of links with neighbouring countries, he pointed out the annual Pak-Afghan trade volume that worked out at $26 million dollars during the Taliban government had now hit the $1200 million mark. He added peace and stability in his country was in the interest of the entire region. "But no country will be calm if there is chaos and insecurity in Afghanistan," main...