BEIJING, Jan. 30 -- Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Vietnamese Vice Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on Thursday discussed over phone ways to improve cooperation between their countries.

Yang hailed the current positive development momentum in the China-Vietnam relations, recalling that last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, discussed bilateral relations over phone with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong and the two leaders reached important consensus on deepening the comprehensive strategic cooperation between the two sides in the next phase.

The consensus should be implemented well by related departments of the two countries and preparatory work needs to be done for high-level officials' exchanges in 2014 and the seventh meeting of the Guiding Committee for China-Vietnam Bilateral Cooperation, said Yang.

For his part, Pham said his country attaches great importance to its relationship with China.

Vietnam stands ready to carry out close cooperation with China and implement the key consensus reached by leaders of the two countries and the two ruling parties, in a bid to further bilateral ties, said Pham.