It seems to me he is deeply worried.
Perhaps the Syrians are having second thoughts about that pact with Iran.
Syria is the weak link in the chain, no doubt.
Were Syria to quit the alliance, Iran might well fold and allow Hezbollah in Lebanon to be sent the way of Saddam.
In fact, even the appearance that Syria was having doubts, the contents of one backchannel conversation with a western power leaked to the media, would raise questions in Iranian minds as to the integrity of the alliance.
This situation is, from the historical view, probably a more classic example of nuclear brinksmanship than was the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Even a slight edge, applied at a strategically decisive time, could change the course of the future for an extended period of time.
Israel pounds Beirut after Haifa hit by rockets
Buildings are demolished in southern Beirut after the Hizbollah stronghold was attacked by Israeli air strikes, July 16, 2006. Israeli air raids shook Beirut on Sunday, the fifth day of a devastating assault on Hizbollah and Lebanon that has prompted no U.N. Security Council action and only a mild plea for restraint from Israel's U.S. ally. (Adnan Hajj/Reuters)