diff --git a/src/app/App.tsx b/src/app/App.tsx
index 662380f..3fd3365 100644
--- a/src/app/App.tsx
+++ b/src/app/App.tsx
@@ -114,7 +114,11 @@ export function App() {
           <Icon name="info" />
         </IconButton>
         <span className={styles.headerDivider} aria-hidden="true" />
-        <Button variant="soft-accent" onClick={() => openModal('donate')} title="Support Astrolabe">
+        <Button
+          variant="soft-accent"
+          onClick={() => openModal('donate')}
+          title="Support Ukraine's defense"
+        >
           Donate
         </Button>
         <ThemeToggle />
diff --git a/src/app/components/DonateModal.test.tsx b/src/app/components/DonateModal.test.tsx
index 8cf8f3e..db1280d 100644
--- a/src/app/components/DonateModal.test.tsx
+++ b/src/app/components/DonateModal.test.tsx
@@ -43,4 +43,9 @@ describe('DonateModal', () => {
     const link = container.querySelector('a')!;
     expect((link.textContent ?? '').trim().length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
   });
+
+  test('the CTA points to the Ukraine-defense donation, not a placeholder', () => {
+    const link = container.querySelector('a')!;
+    expect(link.getAttribute('href')).toBe('https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/');
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/app/components/DonateModal.tsx b/src/app/components/DonateModal.tsx
index 60c0dd7..11ff18f 100644
--- a/src/app/components/DonateModal.tsx
+++ b/src/app/components/DonateModal.tsx
@@ -2,35 +2,36 @@
  * Donate modal body (spec §01B/§01C).
  *
  * Rendered inside ModalShell — no backdrop, close button, or focus trap here;
- * the shell owns all of that (docs/architecture/03 → Layer 3). Minimal by design:
- * a sincere message and a single clear primary action.
- *
- * TODO: Replace DONATE_URL placeholder with the real donation URL before launch.
+ * the shell owns all of that (docs/architecture/03 → Layer 3). The project asks
+ * for nothing for itself: the one solicitation redirects to Ukraine's defense,
+ * where the author would forward any project donations anyway.
  */
 
 import styles from './DonateModal.module.css';
 
 /**
- * Placeholder donation URL — replace before launch.
- *
- * TODO: Set the real donation URL (e.g. a Ko-fi / Open Collective / GitHub
- * Sponsors link) here. The href is intentionally "#" until that is decided so
- * the modal renders correctly without causing any outbound navigation.
+ * Donations go to Ukraine's defense, not the project. savelife.in.ua is the
+ * Come Back Alive (Повернись живим) foundation — Ukraine's largest, supporting
+ * the people defending the country against Russia's invasion.
  */
-const DONATE_URL = '#'; // TODO: replace with real donation URL
+const DONATE_URL = 'https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/';
 
 export function DonateModal() {
   return (
     <div className={styles.donate}>
       <p className={styles.body}>
-        Astrolabe is free, open-source, and built in spare time. If it has saved you hours of
-        context-switching or helped you ship a chart faster, consider supporting its development.
+        Astrolabe is free and open-source, built in spare time — there's nothing to buy and no one
+        to pay.
+      </p>
+      <p className={styles.body}>
+        If it has saved you time and you'd like to give something back, please send it where it
+        matters far more than it would to me: Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion. The Come
+        Back Alive foundation supports the people defending the country.
       </p>
-      <p className={styles.body}>Every contribution, however small, keeps the project alive.</p>
 
       <div className={styles.actions}>
         <a href={DONATE_URL} className={styles.primary} target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">
-          Support Astrolabe
+          Donate to Ukraine's defense
         </a>
       </div>
     </div>