The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, left, shakes hands with the Pakistan president, Asif Ali Zardari, during a meeting in New York.
The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, left, shakes hands with the Pakistan president, Asif Ali Zardari, during a meeting in New York.
The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, left, shakes hands with the Pakistan president, Asif Ali Zardari, during a meeting in New York.
The Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, left, shakes hands with the Pakistan president, Asif Ali Zardari, during a meeting in New York.

Asia

India and Pakistan agree to resume peace talks

The Indian prime minister and the Pakistan president hold a summit over the strained peace talks.

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The Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and the Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari have agreed to resume the two nuclear state's strained peace process. In a joint statement after a summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the leaders said that their foreign secretaries "will schedule meetings of the fifth round of the composite dialogue in the next three months." The composite dialogue, which has made significant progress since it was launched in 2004, has been stalled for months due to political turmoil in Pakistan. The fourth round was completed last October.

The talks since January 2004 have added more bus and train links between the traditionally feuding neighbours, but there has been little headway on Kashmir, the trigger for two of their three wars since 1947. Mr Singh and Mr Zardari also decided to launch trading between the divided zones of the disputed Kashmir region from Oct 21. In their first discussions since Mr Zardari replaced the former President Pervez Musharraf in August, the two leaders also called for an ongoing ceasefire to be "stabilised."

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If you go

The flights

Etihad flies direct from Abu Dhabi to San Francisco from Dh5,760 return including taxes. 

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Etihad Guest members get a 10 per cent worldwide discount when booking with Hertz, as well as earning miles on their rentals. A week's car hire costs from Dh1,500 including taxes.

The hotels

Along the route, Motel 6 (www.motel6.com) offers good value and comfort, with rooms from $55 (Dh202) per night including taxes. In Portland, the Jupiter Hotel (https://jupiterhotel.com/) has rooms from $165 (Dh606) per night including taxes. The Society Hotel https://thesocietyhotel.com/ has rooms from $130 (Dh478) per night including taxes. 

More info

To keep up with constant developments in Portland, visit www.travelportland.com. Good guidebooks include the Lonely Planet guides to Northern California and Washington, Oregon & the Pacific Northwest. 

 

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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:

- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools

- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say

- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance

- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs

- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills

- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month

- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues

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