MOSCOW, February 15. /TASS/. France openly sees Africa as its backyard, but at the same time it accuses Russia of neo-colonialist policies, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the State Duma on Wednesday.

"The French Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson earlier this month accused us of pursuing a neo-colonialist policy in Africa. Paris, which together with other European countries committed numerous bloody crimes on that continent and today still views Africa as its backyard, is putting forward accusations against Moscow, which played a leading role in the liberation of African peoples from colonial oppression, in promoting the emergence of their statehood, and in creating the foundations of their economies and defense capabilities," he said.

Lavrov dismissed France’s accusations as a "mental case."

"It’s a mental case. They are shifting the blame from the guilty to the innocent. No comment," he added.