Russia's forces include tanks, border troops and heavy ammunition.
There are 300 border troops in the region, camped in outposts on the frontier.
Georgia's poorly-paid, badly-led border troops would be little obstacle to a bunch of determined Chechens.What next?
But adding a thousand or so border troops won't stop the cartels or repeal the law of supply and demand.
General Franks said the expanded cooperation could include training and equipment for Turkmenistan's military, border troops and police forces.
Eight Russian border troops were reported killed in the attack, which Russian officials said had been launched from inside Georgia.
Though border troops attend the same academy as the police, they are paid less and are poorly supplied, often running short on fuel, replacement parts and ammunition.
Turkish and Syrian border troops have been shelling each other since Wednesday, after a Syrian mortar shell killed five civilians in Turkey, a NATO member.
During the Soviet era the KGB's responsibilities also included the protection of the country's political leadership, the supervision of border troops, and the general surveillance of the population.
About 20,000 Russian Army and border troops, along with Tajikistan Army forces, patrol the border, near where the Taliban made military gains this fall.
Watchtowers stand every few hundred metres on either side, with some Indian and Pakistani border troops stationed so close together that they can see and hear each other.
