 Johnston protested that the British government could not take part in the kind of judicial enquiry Smith described , as its sovereignty could not be subject to any outside judgement and there was nothing to arbitrate anyway . Smith was again resolute : why , he queried , was Whitehall so adamant to avoid legal arbitration if its ministers were so sure they were right ? He promised to drop the matter if such a panel ruled against him , but to no avail . Johnston said only that he would telegraph Whitehall to inform them that Reedman 's appointment was imminent . Dupont confirmed it that afternoon , telling the Rhodesian Legislative Assembly that the mission had been accepted by Portugal . 
