North Korea will soon replace its top envoy to Germany, a government official said Wednesday, amid reports the current ambassador is being recalled over various diplomatic failures.

"I understand that Ambassador Ri Si-hong will be replaced soon," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

North Korea recently informed Germany of the plan, according to an official at Seoul's Foreign Ministry.

Although the exact reasons are unclear, the South Korean daily Donga llbo cited the possibility that Pyongyang held Ri accountable for Berlin's condemnation of the North's nuclear test in January and Germany's pledge to impose stand-alone sanctions on the communist state.

The paper also raised the possibility that North Korea may be tightening its grip on its officials serving abroad following a series of defections seen to be caused in part by toughened international sanctions against the regime.

Ri was appointed ambassador to Berlin in June 2011. (Yonhap)