ARLINGTON, Va. — Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will deliver the keynote address at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Annual Meeting, which is to be held April 20 to April 23 in Palm Beach, Fla.

“We are honored to have Dr. Gates as our keynote speaker,” said NACDS president and chief executive officer Steve Anderson. “His highly regarded and distinguished career and experience as secretary of defense and nearly three decades as an intelligence professional under eight presidents will no doubt engage and inspire attendees at this year’s meeting.”

Gates served as the nation’s 22nd defense secretary from 2006 to 2011 under President George W. Bush. He is also the only career officer in history of the Central Intelligence Agecy to rise from entry-level employee to director, a position he held from 1991 to 1993.

Gates is also the only secretary of defense to be asked to remain in that office by a newly elected president, serving in President Barack Obama’s first administration from January 2008 until July 2011.