Abstract:An intervention in Afghanistan that has lasted longer than a decade has not brought about what was most hoped for: security for the Afghan people and stabilization of the entire region. These processes are challenged every day by the complexity of Afghanistan's social structures: its culture, values, way of life, tribal networks, politics, insurgent networks, and its history. A closer examination of examples of cultural and political structures can provide us with a perspective on this complexity, and on the deeply intertwined relationships among various actors engaged in the Afghan conflict. In this light, we can demonstrate the repeated shortcomings of liberal peace building in the case of Afghanistan.These examples also manifest the differences in values, attitudes toward gender, and cultural and political perceptions between Afghan and Western societies. possibilities of conflict resolution, and its foundation in traditional structures-such as local communities, tribal or religious structures, or traditional value sets-offer scenarios for feasible strategies to be explored and possibly implemented.Acknowledgement of the Afghan reality on the ground and preparation for peace building missions can effectively improve the goals of efforts pursued and carried out by the international community, with a corresponding improvement in results. In a country that has managed to repel foreign invasions in the past, and tends not to accept dictates from the outside, our chances of success in our mission can be increased if we can admit that liberal values might not apply universally. By listening to Afghan voices directly and ensuring their involvement in the process of reconstruction, our respect for the realities of Afghan life, in the context of their values, creates the possibility to set up a successful strategy for Afghanistan's recovery.IntroductionAfghanistan has been experiencing military and humanitarian intervention for more than ten years. The right - as U.S. President Barack Obama has described this effort - carries several distinctive characteristics. It is also considered by some researchers to be a on Islam. This statement has been strongly denied by the Obama Administration, which took a decisive step in December 2009 to end this conflict by declaring a significant detour and changing its official language, bringing few new wrinkles to the process: the beginning of negotiations with the Taliban and the announced intention to withdraw all U.S. combat troops by 2014. Some others invoke this conflict's similarity to the Vietnam War. Both critics and supporters of this war agree that, under current conditions, Afghanistan will not be able to sustain itself.Despite the lessons of history, the international community became involved in a conflict from which an exit would be hard to envisage and in which success would be difficult to define, let alone to achieve. One of the key elements contributing to this status is the problematic nature of the goal of building a Western-style state structure in the context of a tribal society wracked by ongoing conflict. Strong calls for the prioritization of liberal values - peace, democracy, equality, and economic modernization - are omnipresent in reports and political speeches related to Western missions in Afghanistan. shortcomings of these missions mostly relate to civilian casualties and missteps that deeply affect the cultural and religious sensitivities of the Afghan people.Afghanistan's social structure is dominated by multiple layers made up of ethnic, tribal, clan, family, or qawm entities.2 My primary intention - to analyze these multiple structures (political, cultural, tribal, economic, regional, military, religious, etc.) - would have been too complex to tackle, and indeed would be the work of a lifetime. Therefore, the main focus of this article will be on representative examples of cultural and political structures and their role. …