Washington, May 28 -- The Trump administration has ordered U.S. embassies around the world to temporarily stop scheduling new visa interviews for international students, citing plans to expand the screening of applicants' social media profiles, according to foreign media reports.

Officials say the move is part of a broader effort to tighten vetting procedures for student visas. While no new appointments will be accepted for now, interviews that were already scheduled will proceed as planned, a U.S. State Department source confirmed.

U.S. Secretary of State Mark Rubio has directed embassies to pause the processing of new student visa interviews until further notice. The decision aims to give officials time to implement enhanced backgroun...