China has reaffirmed its commitment to deepening cooperation with the United Nations to consolidate the UN's authority and steer global governance reform in the right direction, as the world body gears up to celebrate the 80th anniversary of its founding next year.

The pledge was made as Vice-President Han Zheng and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met separately with Philemon Yang, president of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, in Beijing on Thursday.

Yang, who is also former prime minister of Cameroon, started his five-day visit to China on Wednesday, his first since taking the UN office in September.

Calling the UN the banner of multilateralism, Han said its role should only be strengthened, not weakened, and expressed China's support for the body in playing a core role in international affairs.

China will always actively participate in the reform and construction of global governance to drive the global governance system toward a more just and reasonable direction, Han added.