Hyderabad, Feb. 18 -- Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to Israel, India has refrained from signing a joint statement by 85 UN member states condemning Israel's decision to seize large areas of the occupied West Bank.

Modi will travel to Israel on a two-day visit from February 25 to 26, where he will address the country's Parliament, the Knesset, the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. This would be his second visit to Israel, the first being in July 2017, which was also the first ever by an Indian Prime Minister to the Jewish state.

Modi is likely to touch upon all issues of bilateral and regional interest during his two-day visit.

However, India's absence from the declaration underscores its curren...