Sri Lankan authorities formally presented on Tuesday a request for debt treatment in the first meeting of the official bilateral creditors committee, the Paris Club said in a statement.

The committee, co-chaired by India, Japan and France, consists of 17 members and includes Paris Club creditors as well as other official bilateral creditors.

Paris Club members with no claims on Sri Lanka as well as China, Saudi Arabia and Iran were observers to the meeting, according to the statement.

(Reporting by Jorgelina do Rosario; writing by Rodrigo Campos; editing by Chris Reese)