Percentage vs raw numbers. Interesting argumentative decision given that the raw numbers and their visual representation in this graph is bare for all to see.

Edit: I assume this is your source for that 2%

https://ourworldindata.org/plastic-waste-trade

While the article is indeed well researched, it doesn't address where the plastics in the ocean were produced. It only talked about total plastic pollution, which is not what the discussion is about.

I mean if you look at one of the graphs there, Europe, Japan, and North America still ship more than 4M tonnes of plastic to Asian countries.

https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2022/10/Plastic-waste-trade-sankey-1536x1175.png

The 970k tonnes fits very well inside that 4M tonnes.