President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed no change in Iran’s staunch “cooperation” with Damascus, in talks with visiting Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halaqi, Agence France Presse reported Wednesday, January 16. “There is no solution except through putting an end to the conflict, beginning national reconciliation and holding elections,” Ahmadinejad said at the Tuesday night meeting, according to the official IRNA news agency, while expressing hope that Syria would overcome its “chaotic situation.” The Iranian president said the two countries’ “cooperation in different fields is beneficial to Iran and Syria as well as regional nations.” Iran has staunchly backed Syrian President Bashar Assad and his regime since an anti-regime uprising first began in March 2011, regarding many Syrian opposition groups as “terrorists” being backed by Western and Arab countries. U.S. officials accuse Iran of providing Syria with arms and military advisers.