U.S. President Barack Obama on Saturday offered condolences to Poland, saying the death of President Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash was "devastating to Poland, to the United States and to the world."

A chartered plane flying from Warsaw to the Russia city of Smolensk crashed in thick fog near the Smolensk airport on Saturday, killing all 96 people on board the aircraft, including President Kaczynski and his wife, army chief of staff, deputy foreign minister and the central bank governor.

Early on Saturday, Obama called Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to express his deepest condolences to the people of Poland on the tragic deaths. "Today's loss is devastating to Poland, to the United States, and to the world," he said in a statement.

"There are heavy hearts across America. The United States cherishes its deep and abiding bonds with the people of Poland," said the president.