A method includes receiving, from a gateway mobile location center, a reliable positioning requirement for obtaining the location of a terminal device. The method also includes determining based on the received reliable position requirement a positioning method that is based on the terminal device reporting and a network-assisted positioning. The method further includes obtaining a first location reported by the terminal device and a second location reported by a base station. The method additionally includes determining location information of the terminal device based on the first location and the second location. The method also includes sending a positioning response to an application function entity from the gateway mobile location center. The positioning response comprises the location information of the terminal device.