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[Display omitted] • Vegetation vulnerability to drought events was assessed by considering both vegetation resistance and resilience. • The Amu Darya delta exhibited vegetation with low resistance and resilience to drought events. • Vegetation resilience in arid areas was more sensitive to dry conditions compared to humid areas. • Croplands and grasslands surrounding the Aral Sea showed high vulnerability, particularly in the Amu Darya delta. • Drought duration was the primary driver influencing vegetation vulnerability to drought events. Extreme drought events in Central Asia are becoming increasingly frequent, causing further harm to the vegetation in this region. It is essential to comprehend how vegetation continually responds to extreme drought events, focusing on both resistance and recovery aspects. To address this, based on the run theory, the study quantified drought characteristics for drought events affecting vegetation. Then, vegetation resistance and resilience to drought events were assessed by adopting a 'resistance–resilience' framework. Further analysis evaluated vegetation vulnerability to drought events by considering both vegetation resistance and resilience. The impact of different drought features on vegetation vulnerability to drought events was quantified using the boosted regression tree (BRT) model. The results showed that rainfed croplands in Northern Kazakhstan exhibited low resistance to drought events, while sparse vegetation in southern Central Asia displayed higher resistance compared to the other land covers. Moreover, natural vegetation demonstrated a longer resistance time compared to croplands. However, the opposite pattern was observed for vegetation resilience, with croplands and sparse vegetation showing high and low resilience, respectively. Sparse vegetation had a longer recovery time compared to croplands. Notably, the Amu Darya delta exhibited vegetation with low resistance and resilience. Furthermore, the study revealed that vegetation resilience in arid areas was more sensitive to dryness compared to humid areas. Regarding vegetation vulnerability to drought events, vegetation in southern region experienced low vulnerability. In contrast, croplands and grasslands around the Aral Sea showed high vulnerability. Most vegetation in the semi-arid zone was more susceptible to the negative impacts of drought events, particularly in croplands and grasslands, compared to other climate zones. The BRT model revealed that drought duration was found to be the primary factor influencing vegetation vulnerability to drought events, accounting for approximately 40% of the explanation in the model. The influences of drought duration on vegetation vulnerability intensified from forests (28.17%) to sparse vegetation (55.87%). The number of drought events contributed only approximately 5% of the explanation. With an understanding of vegetation resilience and vulnerability, policymakers and land managers can make informed decisions and implement measures to mitigate the negative effects of drought, protect fragile vegetation, and promote sustainable management practices in Central Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Precipitation is the main factor affecting the desertification in most regions. • Mutation years of desertification in most areas were observed from 1993 to 2002. • Drought is the major driver of desertification in eastern Xinjiang Province. • Croplands abandonment was the major driver of desertification in northern Kazakhstan. Desertification is one of the main ecological environmental problems in Central Asia. To prevent and eradicate this problem, it is extremely urgent to monitor the long-term desertification process and assess the relative roles of its drivers. Based on an analytical hierarchy process, in this research, the spatiotemporal features of the desertification process were surveyed from 1982 to 2012 using four indicators. Further analysis was focused on determining the relative importance of multiple driving factors causing desertification in different ecosystems. The results revealed significant desertification expansion in the western part of Central Asia, with the most severe desertification occurring in eastern Xinjiang Province and the Ustyurt Plateau, with mean desertification indexes (DIs) as high as 0.8. According to a change-year analysis, mutation years of desertification were observed from 1993 to 2002 for most vegetation types. The desertification process for different vegetation types results from different major driving factors. Climatic factors, including decreased precipitation, increased temperature and drought, were the main drivers of desertification, especially for grasslands, forests and sparse vegetation. The desertification process of sparse vegetation and croplands was expanded and triggered by human activities: oil and gas exploration in the southern Ustyurt Plateau and agricultural abandonment in northern Kazakhstan. The results also indicated that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, rangeland abandonment in eastern Kazakhstan triggered desertification reversion in grasslands. Furthermore, due to inefficient irrigation water use, severe salt accumulation in croplands of the Amu Darya River delta resulted in desertification expansion in this region. In Central Asia, the desertification process in forests and areas of sparse vegetation was extremely sensitive to climatic variations, while that in croplands and grasslands was vulnerable to human activities. Therefore, regional governments should strive to reverse desertification to protect and improve this fragile, arid ecological environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]