The Afghan government has recently signed a draft pact with the Afghan Taliban allied militant group called Hezb-e-Islami for long-term political stability in the country. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who briefly served as the prime minister of Afghanistan during the mid-1990s, leads this group that fought against the International Security Assistance Force since the Afghan War began in 2001.President Ashraf Ghani had long sought for political inclusion of warlords and anti-government forces through the ongoing peace process. Hence, the purpose of such kind of draft pacts is tointegrate like-minded militant groups such as the Hezb-e-Islami into Afghanistan’s political spectrum in order to promote long-term economic and political stability in the region. Hekmatyar’s group has long been accused of orchestrating attacks in Afghan territories with vital support from the Afghan Taliban leadership, and it was also designated as a terrorist organisation by the United States in the early 2000s. Moreover, the United Nations Security Council also blacklisted it. However, the Afghan peace process has entered a crucial stage in which further instability cannot be afforded at any cost. Hence, there is a need for reconciliation with certain stakeholders such as the Hezb-e-Islami. The draft pact shall eventually lead to a permanent peace between the Afghan government and the Hezb-e-Islami whose demands are similar to the ones agreed upon with some warlords back in 2007. This also includes a general amnesty and names being removed from the UN blacklist. In addition, the recently formed Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) that comprises of Afghan, Pakistani, American and Chinese officials is also pushing hard for a successful peace process for Afghanistan by holding regular meetings in Islamabad. Its role is similar to a peacemaking body and the political inclusion of militant groups is a core agenda for the involved states. Nevertheless, there are some major roadblocks to the smooth handling of the peace process due to internal bickering in Afghanistan over Pakistan’s central role. Kabul’s political and bureaucratic machinery largely mistrusts Pakistan’s intelligence and defence circles due to past grievances regarding the alleged state-backing for the Afghan Taliban. Likewise, Pakistan too has legitimate concerns over Kabul being influenced by the Indian state machinery, including its intelligence agencies, which allegedly played a pivotal role in orchestrating major terrorist attacks in Pakistan through proxy groups such as the Pakistani Taliban. The deep mistrust between the two countries hovers over the reconciliatory role played by the QCG and the recent blame-game is also a matter of grave concern for the future of Afghanistan. The war-torn country, bordering the Central Asian Republics, never saw peace ever since the Saur Revolution occurred in April 1978. However, the relentless efforts being done for the political inclusion of the Afghan Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami brings some positive hope for a brighter future of the people of Afghanistan. Should the peace process remain smooth under the patronage of the QCG sans any major hindrance then the democratic norms in the region have the potential to be strengthened by many folds. This shall pave way for a new prosperous era for Afghanistan that shall see return of stability after a period of some almost 40 years.*