The former king of Belgium, Albert II, has acknowledged that he fathered a daughter in a long extramarital affair in the 1960s, marking the end of a paternity suit that he contested for seven years. 

In 2013, Belgian artist and sculptor Delphine Boel launched a lawsuit against the king, recognizing the king as her father. According to Boel, the king had an affair with her mother, Sibylle de Selys Longchamps, resulting in her birth in 1968. 

In May last year, Albert II submitted a DNA sample for a paternity test under the orders of a Belgian court. The test results confirmed that he was Boel's father, which Albert II's lawyers also acknowledged in a statement released on Monday.

"Legally, he will end the legal battle there and accept that Delphine Boel is his fourth child," said the statement, according to public broadcaster RTBF. 

It added that although the legal procedure was "debatable," Albert II wished "to put an end with dignity and honor to this painful procedure."