Iraq and Afghanistan also differ in a few key ways. Iraq was a largely secular society, whereas Afghanistan is strongly religious. Iraq's history was more stable, despite the war with Iran. Afghanistan, on the other hand, has a long history of war and battling invasions.

Iraq and the Balkans are similar in terms of nation-building in that they both have sources of wealth at their disposal. The Balkans enjoy a European location, with easy access to markets for their goods. Iraq has oil. The Afghans, conversely, have a lucrative product but it is illegal in nature. Also, while the Balkans and Iraq both have politics and conflict predominantly on ethnic lines, Afghanistan's political structure is more complex (Maloney, 2004), based along clan lines such that conflict can arise even within members of the same group.

Overall, the efforts in Iraq have some similarities with the Balkans, but little with Afghanistan....
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