State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki’s sparring with reporters the last week suggests that the White House is either confused, or intentionally confusing the public, about the importance of the IAEA’s current round of inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities.

Journalists, and critics, keep pushing Psaki on the fact that Iran is preventing IAEA investigators from inspecting the full extent of the program, including potential military dimensions in places like Parchin. Psaki’s response Monday was that the implementation of a “monitoring mechanism…will be pivotal to whether Iran is abiding by their agreement.” Iran, she continued, will “be required to abide by any part of the agreement that is agreed to.”