H,

Agree you can't transfer directly 1 to 1:

In a "small footprint" occupation (which both IZ and AFG are, despite our numbers), there is a transitive principle - identify the functioning (real) power structures, and either leverage or neutralize them. But don't work directly against them, especially as a foreigner. It will generate problems.

Now if you can allocate resources and authority enough to control (aka Chechnya), you have a chance with a direct challenge strategy. This can backfire, as Afghanistan's problems are partially the result of the destruction of its traditional power structures from the 1970s to the present, which facilitated the rise of the Taleban.