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Prince Albert II of Monaco attends a Catholic mass celebrated by Monaco's archibishop Bernard Barsi in the cathedral. Prince Albert II received the blessing that marked his formal accession to the throne of the Mediterranean microstate, synonymous with high living and jet-set glamour. (Photo: Xinhua/AFP)

MONACO, July 12 (Xinhuanet) -- Prince Albert II of Monaco made hisformal accession to the throne of the Mediterranean microstate on Tuesday at a solemn Mass in the Monacan capital of Monte Carlo.

    Albert took royal power upon the death of his father in April. At the ceremony, Albert pledged to help Monaco play a more important role on international financial markets.

    "It is my firm determination to help make Monaco a reference point in the financial sector, adding still more sophisticated knowledge to its banking competence: asset management and capital investment," he said in a speech during a reception for 6,000 of the principality's 32,000 habitants.

    Albert, a 47-year-old bachelor, admitted last Wednesday that hewas father of a two-year-old boy, Alexandre Coste, and told FrenchTF1 television on Monday that this son "will want for nothing" in his life, for the child cannot become ruler of Monaco under current succession laws, which exclude illegitimate children.

    French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday sent a message of congratulations to Albert, saying he would receive the prince in Paris on Sept. 9. Enditem