The amount [of money] allocated for South Ossetia is three times more than what the entire Voronezh Oblast receives in three years. Better bomb Voronezh, that way we'll actually get normal roads.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, this story is probably a myth, since no records of the statement actually exist.[3] The earliest references to the meme date back to August 2008, when a LiveJournal user referenced a similar joke supposedly made by "the residents of Voronezh", with no mention of a government official.[3]
Another notable early mention was on 21 December 2011, when, in the context of the opening stages of the Syrian civil war, a Russian-language tweet satirically attributed a quote to Vladimir Putin that said:[3]
If NATO invades Syria, we will start bombing Voronezh.
Widespread popularity
Starting in the mid-2010s, with the international sanctions on Russia and retaliatory Russian counter-sanctions, the meme had a change in meaning. In 2012, the Russian parliament passed the Dima Yakovlev Law, which prevented the adoption of Russian orphans by Americans.[4] The main blow of the law fell on the Russian orphans themselves, many of whom suffered from serious illnesses.[4][3] Similar exchanges of mutual sanctions occurred after Russia's annexation of Crimea, hurting ordinary Russian consumers.[4] Thus, a common Russian joke was that "in response to the sanctions, the president gave the order to bomb Voronezh".[5][3]
A joke spread on Runet about a supposed conversation between two Russian government officials:[3]
The meme was brought up again during the Wagner Group rebellion in June 2023, when there were reports of government shelling against the Wagner rebels causing an oil depot in Voronezh Oblast to catch fire.[7][8][9][10][11]