Polish President Among 97 Killed in Plane Crash in Western Russia

Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife and 95 other people perished Saturday when the plane they were aboard crashed after attempting to land in foggy weather in western Russia, the AP reported.

Kaczynksi and other top civilian and military leaders were on their way to events honoring the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre -- the slayings of thousands of Polish officers by the Soviet Union's secret police. There were no signs of survivors and no immediate indications of foul play, the AP said.

Kaczynski, 60, was an anti-communist who was pro-America in his foreign policy. He favored a U.S. plan to put a missile defense facility in Poland.

In Washington, President Obama telephoned Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to express condolences. "Today's loss is devastating to Poland, to the United States and to the world," Obama said. "President Kaczynski was a distinguished statesman who played a key role in the Solidarity movement, and he was widely admired in the United States as a leader dedicated to advancing freedom and human dignity."

In Russia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin quickly took charge of the investigation -- a response to the sensitive relations between the two countries.

Kaczynski first came before the public as a child film star, appearing with his twin brother in the 1962 movie, "Two Who Stole the Moon," about two kids who try to enrich themselves by stealing the Moon and selling it.