When dilithium turns up on the colony world Direidi, the Federation and the Klingon Empire send rival delegations to negotiate mining rights rather than risk a war neither side is allowed to start under Organian law. Direidi's own settlers have other plans, staging musical numbers and manufactured showdowns until both sides realize they've been maneuvered toward cooperation instead of a strip-mined planet — Ford's entry plays the premise for comedy rather than combat.
Summary by Loreful, from public sources