Defense startup Castelion said on Friday it has won contracts to integrate its Blackbeard hypersonic strike weapon with current U.S. Army systems, the first step toward allowing the military to place the powerful and nearly unstoppable weapons around the world.

The US Army’s first hypersonic battery will have its full load of eight missiles by December, marking a major milestone in the program.

National Guard soldiers tested the M250 light machine gun during a “New Equipment Training” (NET) event at Camp Ripley, Minnesota.

The blast at the facility in Bucksnort, killed 16 and destroyed the factory, along with explosives used by for the Army and Navy.

Russia's leader Vladimir Putin has terminated the agreement under which Russia and the United States committed to dispose of plutonium that is no longer required for defence purposes. Details: Russia has cancelled not only the Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement itself but also all accompanying protocols.