China sent a wave of warplanes and navy ships around Taiwan the day before its National Day, a show of pressure that keeps tensions high but stops short of a crisis.

• Taiwan's defense ministry tracked 19 Chinese aircraft heading out to sea on the morning of Oct. 9, with 13 crossing the unofficial line that splits the Taiwan Strait.
• The planes entered airspace north, central and southwest of Taiwan while Chinese navy ships operated nearby.
• Beijing called it a "joint combat readiness patrol," the standard label it uses for these pressure operations.
• Taiwan responded with its own planes, ships and shore-based missile units, and said it had the situation fully monitored.
• The timing matters: Oct. 10 is Taiwan's National Day, and China has a pattern of staging military activity around politically symbolic dates.

Outlook: Expect more of these patrols around Taiwan's National Day, with no sign of escalation beyond the now-routine pattern.