A method for establishing cooperative communication, comprising: receiving, by supporting user equipment, UE, a pairing request message sent by a network side, wherein the pairing request message carries a short-distance identifier of benefitted UE; when self supporting capability information of the supporting UE indicates that the supporting UE supports only friend UE, acquiring, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list is used to record short-distance identifier information of UE that is served by the supporting UE and that is related to the supporting UE; performing, by the supporting UE, identity authentication on the benefitted UE according to the friend UE short-distance identifier list and the short-distance identifier of the benefitted UE that is carried in the pairing request message; and if the benefitted UE has been authenticated, performing, by the supporting UE, pairing processing with the benefitted UE, and sending a pairing response message to the network side, wherein the acquiring, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list comprises: sending, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list request message to a multiple user equipment cooperative communication mobile broadband control server, MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list request message carries a short-distance identifier of the supporting UE; and receiving, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list response message sent by the MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list response message carries the friend UE short-distance identifier list. receiving, by supporting user equipment, UE, a pairing request message sent by a network side, wherein the pairing request message carries a short-distance identifier of benefitted UE; when self supporting capability information of the supporting UE indicates that the supporting UE supports only friend UE, acquiring, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list is used to record short-distance identifier information of UE that is served by the supporting UE and that is related to the supporting UE; performing, by the supporting UE, identity authentication on the benefitted UE according to the friend UE short-distance identifier list and the short-distance identifier of the benefitted UE that is carried in the pairing request message; and if the benefitted UE has been authenticated, performing, by the supporting UE, pairing processing with the benefitted UE, and sending a pairing response message to the network side, wherein the acquiring, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list comprises: sending, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list request message to a multiple user equipment cooperative communication mobile broadband control server, MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list request message carries a short-distance identifier of the supporting UE; and receiving, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list response message sent by the MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list response message carries the friend UE short-distance identifier list. sending, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list request message to a multiple user equipment cooperative communication mobile broadband control server, MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list request message carries a short-distance identifier of the supporting UE; and receiving, by the supporting UE, a friend UE short-distance identifier list response message sent by the MUCC MBB Control Server, wherein the friend UE short-distance identifier list response message carries the friend UE short-distance identifier list.