Prince Laurent of Belgium has confirmed that he has another son. Belga News Agency reported on Sept. 9 that the 61-year-old Prince has "publicly" recognized the paternity of 25-year-old Clement Vandenkerckhove. According to the news agency, there "have long been rumours of Laurent having a child with actress and singer Wendy van Wanten, whose real name is Iris Vandenkerckhove."
Per Belga News Agency, the palace is not commenting on the matter. VRT NWS published the statement that Laurent shared with the news agency, which read: "With this message, I acknowledge that I am the biological father of Clément Vandenkerckhove. We have spoken openly and honestly about this over the past few years. This announcement is based on a sense of understanding and respect for those involved. It is the result of joint consultation. I ask that you receive this information with the restraint that the nature of this intimate matter requires. I will not make any further statements or provide further explanations about this."
In the documentary Clément: Son of.., airing on Sept. 9, Clément is said to tell "his story once and openly reveals for the first time who his father is," while his mom reportedly explains why she kept her son's father a secret. "This is the hardest thing I've ever done. If it were up to me, I probably would never have talked about this," Wendy is quoted as saying in the trailer (via VRT NWS). "But I'm doing this to support my child and out of love for him."
VRT NWS reported that the Prince and Wendy met at a fashion show in Paris during the mid-1990s and the two even attended Prince Edward's wedding in 1999. Wendy's son Clément was born the following year in 2000.
Prince Laurent, who is King Philippe of Belgium's younger brother, has been married to his wife, Princess Claire, since April 2003. The pair share three children: 21-year-old daughter Princess Louise and 19-year-old twin sons, Prince Nicolas and Prince Aymeric.
In 2020, Laurent's father, former King Albert II, who abdicated in 2013, publicly acknowledged that he had fathered a daughter, Delphine Boël, outside of his marriage to Queen Paola, whom he has three children with: King Philippe, Princess Astrid, and Prince Laurent.