Understanding regional drought responses to CO2 removal is critical for carbon-neutral pathways, yet remains poorly understood for China. To address this gap, we developed a bias-corrected and spatially downscaled SPEI dataset from multi-model CO2 removal experiments to evaluate drought evolution, driving mechanisms, and event characteristics (frequency, duration, and severity) across China and its subregions. The results reveal a lagged drought response of 5–10 years to rapid CO2 removal, after