Speaking to US broadcaster CNBC from Paris where he held "very good" economic meetings with the Chinese, Bessent said a presidential trip abroad "may not be optimal" during a time of military conflict with Iran.

"We will see whether the visit takes place as scheduled. But what I do want to parse -- and there's a false narrative out there -- that if the meetings are delayed, it wouldn't be delayed because the president's demanded that China police the Strait of Hormuz," Bessent said.

"If the meeting for some reason is rescheduled, it would be rescheduled because of logistics," he added. "The president wants to remain in DC to coordinate the war effort, and traveling abroad at a time like this may not be optimal."

Trump, in an interview published Sunday in the Financial Times, said his planned summit with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping could be delayed, as the US president seeks help in reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The important oil trade route has been effectively blocked as a result of the US-Israeli war against Iran.